It’s striking, watching the world realize the climate crisis is going to get worse before it gets better. The Global South, where climate change has been most evident, is struggling to get its message across, while we in the U.S. are only half a term beyond a Presidency that slashed EPA policies and ignored climate change. When the attitude towards our democratic process is…complicated, it's somewhat exciting to hear when business leaders, the people who control the money, are eager to affect change in carbon emissions. 

                                                  Photo Courtesy: Aigen
Larry Fink, CEO of investment management firm BlackRock (with over $10TN in assets under management), released his 2022 letter to CEOs on Monday. In it, he states that the next billion-dollar companies are going to be the ones who address climate change and advised that investors take note, not in spite of their capitalistic pursuits, but because of them. He insists that this is not about being ‘woke’ but rather getting richer. This is out of step with another billionaire CEO, Warren Buffett, who is increasingly getting criticized for his lack of climate initiative at Berkshire Hathaway.

Still, it’s hard to please everyone. Environmentalists are urging BlackRock to take a firmer stance against investments in industries that are slow to clean up their acts. Then there are the red-state lawmakers who are pulling public funds from BlackRock for not playing nice with the coal and gas industries. 

The push to a carbon-free economy is supported by the Biden Administration, citing the extreme weather events of recent years (think Texas’ winter storm), that have cost taxpayers more than $600BN. 

Aigen is one company that is committed to carbon reduction. They’re developing a solar-powered robotics platform for agriculture and soil regeneration. Fermata Energy is accelerating the adoption of electric vehicles by empowering owners. 

For more companies that might make the list of Larry Fink’s climate unicorns, search the latest fundings for ‘climatetech’ or ‘renewable energy.’