A silver bullet won't solve a green problem

The author contends that localized climate efforts and carbon pricing alone are insufficient, advocating instead for a comprehensive inventory of technologies and targeted investment. A central theme is the capacity of the reinsurance industry to remove financial volatility from carbon-free ventures, such as offshore wind and sustainable agriculture, thereby enabling enterprises to raise capital and innovate. The text notes that while the European Green Deal and 65 other countries have committed to net-zero by 2050, these represent only about 27% of global emissions.

• Current global commitments to net-zero emissions by 2050 are insufficient in scale, as the European Green Deal and 65 other UN signatories collectively account for only approximately 27% of global emissions.
• The transition to net-zero emissions by 2050 is deemed possible with an estimated cost of less than 0.5% of global GDP, according to research from the Energy Transitions Commission and the World Economic Forum's Mission Possible Platform.
• Reinsurance serves as a critical financial lever for the energy transition by transferring risk and removing financial volatility from carbon-free projects, which increases the confidence of lenders and investors.
• Swiss Re is implementing a decarbonized business model with a commitment to reach net-zero emissions by 2050 across both its investment assets and underwriting liabilities.
• Practical applications of reinsurance in climate mitigation include providing insurance for offshore wind installations in Taiwan and France, and offering income replacement for farmers in Mexico facing extreme weather.

APA

Mumenthaler, C. (2020). A silver bullet won't solve a green problem. World Economic Forum. https://www.weforum.org/stories/climate-action/silver-bullet-climate-change/

Chicago

Mumenthaler, Christian. A silver bullet won't solve a green problem. World Economic Forum, 2020. https://www.weforum.org/stories/climate-action/silver-bullet-climate-change/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Mumenthaler |first1=Christian |title=A silver bullet won't solve a green problem |publisher=World Economic Forum |date=22 January 2020 |url=https://www.weforum.org/stories/climate-action/silver-bullet-climate-change/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{mumenthaler2020silver, author = {Mumenthaler, Christian}, title = {{A silver bullet won't solve a green problem}}, publisher = {World Economic Forum}, year = {2020}, month = jan, url = {https://www.weforum.org/stories/climate-action/silver-bullet-climate-change/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }