Kaj Embren

Kaj Embren is an expert on Sustainability. Explore KajEmbren.org for expert blogs on sustainability, climate change, and the impact of climate on insurance. Tune in to Kaj Embren’s podcast, followed by over 100K listeners, where business leaders and policymakers discuss actionable strategies for sustainability and addressing climate risks. Stay informed with insights to build a sustainable future.

Cities Grapple with the Growing Threat of Extreme Heat

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Extreme heat waves are no longer rare phenomena—they’re intensifying, lasting longer, and occurring with alarming frequency. For urban areas, the stakes are especially high, as rising temperatures pose risks to public health, strain infrastructure, and exacerbate social inequalities. Developing cities, in particular, face unique challenges due to rapid urbanization, limited resources, and inadequate infrastructure. Addressing …

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From Hydropower to Hypergrowth: How Luleå Became a Data Hub Dynamo

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In the world of city planning, few stories are as electrifying as Luleå’s transformation into a global data center hub. At the heart of this tale is Nicklas Nordström, the city’s mayor from 2014 to 2019, who leveraged the city’s abundant hydroelectric power and Arctic chill to attract one of the biggest names in tech: …

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Why Spain’s disaster insurance stands apart from Southern Europe’s

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Spains disaster insurance ​ Spain’s “Extraordinary Risk Insurance” model, administered by the Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros (CCS), is indeed unique and has no direct equivalent in other Southern European countries. However, some neighboring countries have mechanisms to manage extraordinary risks, albeit with significant differences in structure and coverage. Here’s how a few of these …

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Spain’s “Extraordinary Risk Insurance”

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Extraordinary Risk Insurance Spain Senior Advisor in Sustainability with a focus on Climate Policies and Actions. Awarded as the number 1 Social Media Influencer in Europe in 2022 and 2023(Energy, Climate, Sustainability, Food) Seguro de Riesgos Extraordinarios provides a unique model for covering extraordinary risks, including those linked to climate change, through a public-private scheme …

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A Very Swedish Approach to Climate Finance and Insurance

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Part 3 of 3 in the series “Navigating Climate Change” for Swiss Re​​ For this final article of the “Navigating Climate Change” series, based on the Swiss ReInstitute report “Changing Climate: The Heat Is (Still) On,” I will highlight one of its criticalthemes: how to reduce climate change-related losses through collaboration between thepublic and private …

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From NYC to the Netherlands, Innovation Helps Cities Tackle Coastal Flooding

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Part 2 of 3 in the series “Navigating Climate Change” for Swiss Re Hurricanes are among the most devastating natural perils in the U.S., posing a major threat to lives, businesses, and essential infrastructure. They are also among the most expensive — especially in coastal regions, which have been focal points for the country’s population …

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How Climate Change Is Shaking up Insurance in the US in 2024

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Part of the series “Navigating Climate Change” for Swiss Re In 2024, climate change is profoundly shaking up the US insurance industry. As extreme weather events increase, homeowners, businesses, and local governments are grappling with the rising costs and risks. This article delves into How Climate change is shaking up insurance in the US in …

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Cities at the Forefront: The Dubai COP28 Breakthrough

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This is a transcription from the latest Transformers episode. Transformers talk about role of cities and regions in the climate negotiations at COP Talking to Yunus Arikan, Director of Global Advocacy, ICLEI World Secretariat, Focal Point of the LGMA Constituency to the UNFCCC.   Kaj Embrén: Welcome to Transformers, the podcast about how business people …

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Stora Enso, Tetra Pak invest in beverage carton recycling line

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The new beverage carton recycling line in Poland will have an annual capacity to recycle 50,000 metric tons per year. Helsinki-based Stora Enso, a global packaging producer, has partnered with Switzerland-based Tetra Pak, a packaging solutions company, to invest a combined 29 million euros (or almost $31.7 million) in a new recycling line for postconsumer …

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Foods From the Lab That We’ll Eat in the Future

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What will food look like in the near future? With the world’s population expanding and living longer, but paradoxically more susceptible to diet-related diseases, disorders and even deaths, and with the imperative need to minimise our impact on the environment, there is every indication that we are on the threshold of changing our eating patterns …

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Greening the Chain: How Supply Chain Decarbonization Powers Sustainable Business Success

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Companies across industries are now recognizing that a green and efficient supply chain isn’t just a moral obligation, it’s a competitive advantage. In an era where sustainability and environmental responsibility are at the forefront of global priorities, supply chain decarbonisation has emerged as a pivotal strategy for businesses aiming to reduce their carbon footprint and …

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The potential of peelings: COP28 must address the sustainable use of all food

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The United Nations estimates that about one-third of all food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted every year. This waste amounts to about 1.3 billion tons of food, enough to feed 2 billion people. But our potato peels, apple cores, and bread crusts offer fantastic potential to enhance sustainability. COP28’s day of Food, …

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COP28: UN says staggering $7 trillion spent every year on investments that fuel climate change

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Nearly $7 trillion of public and private finance each year supports activities that directly harm nature – some 30 times the amount spent on nature-based solutions annually, according to a shocking UN report launched on Saturday at COP28 in Dubai. The report from the UN’s environmental wing, UNEP, also revealed that despite decades of calls for …

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‘Leaving No One Behind’ – Neighbourhood Economics Is the story of how an organisation united 35,000 people living in a Suburb of Stockholm,Sweden

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In a world defined by diversity and interconnectedness, fostering a sense of community that embraces every individual is a goal worth pursuing. And a small neighborhood in the Swedish municipality of Nacka, just east of Stockholm, offers a remarkable example of how to do this — one that speaks to the power of unity, cultural …

‘Leaving No One Behind’ – Neighbourhood Economics Is the story of how an organisation united 35,000 people living in a Suburb of Stockholm,Sweden Read More »

Phosphorus Saved Our Way of Lif-and Now Threatens to End It

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This blog post is a re-publishing of an article in The New Yorker Magazine in February,2023 by Elizabeth Kolbert. The article is a part of the Transfers Podcast – The Phosphorus Paradox with Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize Awarded journalist for The New Yorker Magazine and Pär Larshans, Sustainability Director at Ragn-Sells, leader of the transition into …

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Realizing The Paris Agreement – building bridges and moving forward

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Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) is the first major global sustainability event to take place since COP27, uniting climate action toward COP28, which takes place in November 2023 in Dubai. Realizing The Paris Agreement We all know we are at risk of not meeting the Paris Agreement targets. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), …

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It is now time for Governance, Capacity building and Finance – with brave political leadership

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In Today’s video blog I have a chat with Yunus Arikan, an ICLEI – (Local Governments for Sustainability) leader for the multilevel proactive Climate Actions – LGMA. Yunus has over the years influenced the COP process to strengthen cross-border cooperation between local, regional, and national networks. The realization that the current COP process does not …

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How to Make $3,000 a Month Citi Biking

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Article from Bloomberg City Lab, by Spenser Mestel. Originally published here. How to Make $3,000 a Month Citi Biking Lyft’s “Bike Angel” program offers credit and prizes to riders willing to relocate bicycles across New York City’s bikesharing system. In August, New York’s Citi Bike program had its highest ridership ever: 3.7 million rides.Photographer: Mark Kauzlarich/Bloomberg …

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The world is on track for 2.6C by 2100 😞

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By Sasja Beslik This blog is from Sasja Beslik Newsletter ESG on a Sunday! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support his work. Link: https://substack.com/sign-in?redirect=%2Faccount%3Futm_source%3Dsubstack%26utm_medium%3Demail&for_pub=esgonasunday&email=&with_password=&change_user=false&justTrying=  Listen to Transformers podcast with Sasja Beslik and Mats Andersson here.   The world is on track for 2.6C by 2100 😞 The climate pledges made by countries …

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The clarion call of ‘transition finance’ in a warming, wobbly world

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By Joel Makower From his blogpost Two Steps Forward earlier published in GreenBiz, 12 September 2022. Listen to the Transformers Podcast episode with Joel here.   During my whirlwind meetings in London last week — somewhere between the arrival of one “Elizabeth” on Monday and the departure of another three days later — a two-word phrase kept coming up: …

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Urban transition in Malmö: Driving systemic change through joined-up innovation

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Cities around the world face an enormous challenge in becoming healthy places to live, while reaching net-zero emissions in just a few years. The changes needed are enormous, but feasible. Success will depend on at least two factors. One – citizens will need to engage with – and confront – those who own and operate …

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Energy transformation in wartimes – Fully possible to stop EU imports of gas

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Vladimir Putin’s regime is heavily dependent on energy exports and old energy technologies. Half of the Russian budget comes from the export of fossil fuels. In addition, Russia, together with Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, accounts for more than half of the world’s uranium mining, and all nuclear reactors that have begun construction outside China after 2019 …

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“Reflections on Governance for a Circular Economy” – by Anders Wijkman

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This article was written by Anders Wijkman for the Global Challenges Foundation.  Listen to the Transformers episode with Anders here.   Welcome to the world of the Circular Economy – an emergent way of looking at the economy. The backdrop is the rapidly increasing throughput of energy and materials, not least the growing use of …

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The Trillion Dollar Market Opportunities at the Bottom of the Pyramid – by Grant Schreiber

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Jack Sim (photo) By Grant Schreiber I have moved from the Third World to the First World in my life. I was privileged to be poor before I became rich, to understand what it feels like to live in poverty without needing to read a book. I failed all my subjects at school, but the …

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James O’Tool: The Enlightened Capitalists: Cautionary Tales of Business Pioneers Who Tried to Do Well by Doing Good

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Listen to the Transformers episode with James here.   As a new generation attempts to address social problems through enlightened organizational leadership, James O’Toole explores a major question being posed today in Britain and America:   An expert on ethical leadership analyzes the complicated history of business people who tried to marry the pursuit of …

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In a couple of weeks we have another COP… – by Sasja Beslik

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This article was written by guest writer Sasja Beslik. Listen to the Transformers episode with Sasja here. This time, like many times before, there will be speeches and there will be pledges. There will be media-friendly spins and corporate line-ups with happy, friendly faces installing confidence in the public. Yes, we can make it, and …

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What Does “Net-Zero Emissions” Mean? 8 Common Questions, Answered

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This article was originally written by Kelly Levin, Taryn Fransen, Clea Schumer and Chantal Davis (WRI). he latest research is clear: To avoid the worst climate impacts, global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions will need to drop by half by 2030 and reach net-zero around mid-century. Recognizing this urgency, a rapidly growing number of national government, …

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Societies in Transition

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  I started Transformers, my podcast, in the middle of the pandemic,  hoping that the climate emergency debate would reach individuals, families, think tanks, politicians, businesses, academia, and organisations. To have an overview of my podcast,  I have listed all 20 programmes already produced in case you are a new follower and would be interested …

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The Swedish steel and iron mining industry investment into the low carbon revolution in the Arctic

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In 2017 Sweden adopted a new climate policy framework. The framework consists of a climate act, climate targets and a climate policy council. My podcast with Svante Axelsson – national coordinator of Fossil free Sweden – inspired me to look into the role of the Swedish industry and in particularly, that of the steel industry …

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Africa in the sun

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According to Dr. Lauren A. Johnston when Jack Ma visited Africa for the first time he said that the Africa in 2017 was the “China of 20 years ago”. China had poor developed infrastructure, large low income young population, lack of infrastructure in retail, logistics and banking sectors. In 20 years, the number of internet users …

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Are you an optimist or a pessimist?

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Transformers | The sustainability change makers Jonathon Porritt | Hope in Hell, a “call to action” on the Climate Emergency Play Episode Pause Episode Mute/Unmute Episode Rewind 10 Seconds 1x Fast Forward 30 seconds 00:00 / 00:38:44 Subscribe Share Google Play Spotify RSS Feed Share Link Embed

Internet the highway for systems entrepreneurs

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Transformers | The sustainability change makers Bert-Ola Bergstrand | Creating the conditions that encourages systems to change Play Episode Pause Episode Mute/Unmute Episode Rewind 10 Seconds 1x Fast Forward 30 seconds 00:00 / 00:37:44 Subscribe Share Google Play Spotify RSS Feed Share Link Embed

Stockholm Exergi building, pioneer in ccs and bio-ccs helping tackle climate crisis and making stockholm climate positive by 2040

Stockholm Exergi: Bio-CCS to tackle climate change and historical emissions

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For those of you who do not know Stockholm Exergi, the basic facts are: it provides energy to all of Stockholm; it discontinued the use of coal ahead of schedule; it is owned by the city of Stockholm and Fortum, a Finish State company. But I want to talk more about Bio-CCS and its contribution …

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From Rio 1992 to Växjö 2019 – the role of governance in creating Europe’s first municipal fossil-free strategy

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For full report request to kaj@embren.com Växjö strategy of governance to create Europe’s first fossil-free city In 1996, the municipality voted to end the use of fossil fuel, before the city’s 2010 Environmental Programme announced that this target should be reached by 2030. This report’s scope is to evaluate the role governance has played in Växjö’s …

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Urban transition in Malmö: Driving systemic change through joined-up innovation

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Hjalmar Falck, Verksamhetschef Fastighetsägare BID Sofielund Cities around the world face an enormous challenge in becoming healthy places to live, while reaching net-zero emissions in just a few years. The changes needed are enormous, but feasible. Success will depend on at least two factors. One – citizens will need to engage with – and confront …

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HYBRIT: a revolution in steelmaking?

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Heavy industry is responsible for 30% of global greenhouse gases emissions. Currently, two-thirds of industrial emissions come directly from material processes. New energy, management and technology solutions are needed to decarbonise raw materials extraction, production processes and operating systems in every sector. Now is the time to connect and establish new partnerships between companies, innovators …

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How to overcome silos and inspire for change?

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#365ACTNOW –  Learn from the Bush Foundation – https://lnkd.in/eF8f8fP Minnesota – Investing in great ideas and the people who power them – Video interview with Susan Hammel, CFA at Social Capital Market (SOCAP) #cities #regions Video How to overcome silos and inspire change from Kaj Embren on Vimeo. Susan Hammel, CFA, Minneapolis, Minnesota Impact Investing …

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Zero Carbon, Closed Loop and Conservationist

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Guest writer: Charles Secrett, Robertsbridge, UK Charles Secrett reflects on the epic challenges and opportunities facing an economy in desperate need of a comprehensive green revamp   When David Attenborough, conservationist extraordinaire, and Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England, speak with one voice, warning of an imminent, existential threat to civilization – climate …

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Amazon on Fire

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Brasils Indigenous population united to fight the Jair Bolsonaro Government. The Indian Kayapo Chief Raoni welcomed over 500 Indian Leaders from more than 50 tribes in the Amazon to a meeting in January 2020. Their fight against fires, grabbing of indian land, illegal logging, gold and diamond mining has now been going on for 40 years …

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