The innovations that will have the greatest impact on climate will replace high polluting products, processes and infrastructure. Digital innovations may deliver incremental benefit by optimising existing systems, however, like the digital revolution required PCs and smart phones, the green economy will require a foundation of hardware, heavy assets, green chemicals, new materials,  and real  businesses to scale.  Software cannot eat carbon.

Rapid adoption of scalable mitigation and adaptation technologies will create compounding climate benefit. There is a time-value of carbon – CO2e saved today is more valuable than that saved in the future.  Benefits of saving CO2e today are realised through slowing the pace of reaching tipping points, the difference in baked-in warming, and scale-up of models that will deliver further carbon savings in the future. 

​

Capital Efficiency, realised through appropriate financial tools and business models, is necessary to accelerate adoption of climate innovations and achieve global climate goals. Capital flow are dramatically less than projected requirements. As a sector, fewer financial instruments are available to support the growth and adoption of climate tech, despite touching every aspect of the economy. Financial innovation will drive the transition.

India, as a country, may have the single greatest impact on achieving global climate goals. At the inflection point for rapid economic growth, India will use 70% of the 1.5° carbon budget if it follows China's development path. With proven capabilities developing high-quality affordable technologies, India can leapfrog legacy systems to support its own economic development and  demonstrate a new trajectory for other developing markets.