It’s not just scientists and world leaders who are trying to tackle the threat of climate change. Financial Times readers – surely some of the brainiest on the planet – are being asked for their creative ideas too.
I mentioned before how I am really impressed by Lionel Barber, editor of the pink one, and he is backing the FT Climate Change Challenge to find the world’s most creative ideas for tackling the threat of climate change.
The objective of the competition is to harness the collective 
brainpower of FT readers to identify ideas that have the potential to be scaled up to a significant size, both to build a successful business and to have a material impact on greenhouse gas emissions.
Over the next 11 weeks, FT readers will be invited to submit suggestions of companies with imaginative ideas for addressing the threat of climate change. It is a global competition which is seeking practical business ideas that will reduce emissions and make us more resilient to the climate change ahead.
The great thing about this competition is its emphasis on businesses which need to take this environmental threat seriously. And the winning idea could make a huge difference too as judges are looking for a project that deserves to go big, but will only be able to do so with an extra push from the recognition and cash it will gain from winning the FT Climate Change Challenge.
When the shortlist is announced, I will publish them on my blog and ask for your views. But until then, do you have any ideas? Can you get your organisation interested in taking part?
Use the hot air from collective global govts and financial institutions or burn all the bureaucracy from this Labour Govt
Winchester Whisperer maybe correct. Climate change is just a load of hot air and an excuse to tax us all. Depends on what agenda you believe in.
Hi Elle, as a lifelong semi-environmentalist – after all I do like my 4x4s, my jet-ski, my air miles and my cheap flights – I think it is probably now wiser (on my part) to address the issue as one of alternative technologies.
After all even in the Green group there is a divide between those wgo support nuclear power and those who are against in, on environmental grounds.
Curious to hear it said now that it is indeed alternative technologies that may help drive us out of this impending/looming recession. Well perhaps the advice is a little dated since we have been trading partners with germany for the last ten years and more (well since world war two actually), and needless to say what we trade in apart from BMWs, VWS, Porches, and Bosch is advanced technologies.
Yep everything from improved glass, insulation and other eco-friendly building materials, to advanced super-efficient heating and cooling systems, and not forgetting the latest medical and surgical instruments.
Myself, I can’t wait for electric cars which offer the acceleration of a Ferrari to become available to the general public – but as with cars that can do 150mph or more, where is one to drive them but on German autobahns
and the next generation of sunbeds, 10 minutes a day should be able get rid of any excess fats or toxins, prevent or reverse any cancers, and who knows may even cure or prevent the flu by eliminating viruses & bugs, and all with a healthy tan to boot
and all for less than the price of a little tub of plastic with 10ml or is it 200ml of ‘activia’ or a bowl of Special K – lol
Have a nice day
The key to controlling polution and greenhouse gases is largely population control.
And think about it – people are dying in a 4 year drought but every news item shows babies.
China and India are using coal like it’s going out of fashion but are they using the most efficient technology? Sharng knowledge is key. To direct this the politicians must do the right thing. To do that someone must tell the charismatic idiots what the right thing is.
And people should be made green aware. What I mean is that chopping down the rainforest to grow biofuels is stupid and counter-productive. It simply is an excuse for canny companies to jump on the bandwagon. And Where do you think electric cars get their power from? Could be a coal fired power station and the losses involved are probably significant and should be included. And what about the life of the battery, costs and carbon footprint of production? Carbon neutral is what we should be aiming for.
Did anyone hear t article on man-made trees? A more stupid idea….well, you can’t make it up.
How do you answer those, Ellee, who do not believe in climate change? I do, of course.
James Higham – direct them to Hitchensblog where they might feel at home -> he doesn’t believe it either (and he might be right!)
A most worthy project, Ellee! I served on a Rainforest preservation non-profit board for 7 years! 🙂
[…] I am totally blown away by the innovativeness of these five far-reaching ideas which have been shortlisted in the Financial Times Climate Change Challenge which I wrote about last November. […]
i think that is great we need more ways to save money when it comes to that.