Welcome to Future-Focused Investing: Our Advantage Is Huge

As of 2019, the U.S. produced about 39.7 billion pounds of greenhouse gasses per day. That’s a huge number.

But buried in that data is a silver lining: It’s about a 12% decrease from what we produced in 2005, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

As you can see, the transition to a sustainable economy isn’t happening overnight. Report after report shows it will take decades.

And surveys reveal that climate change still feels overwhelming to people even if they’re making changes in their own lives. But we’re talking about 5.3 billion pounds of greenhouse gasses cut in 2019.

That’s something to celebrate.

Long-term changes like modernizing our power grid will be instrumental in keeping this trend intact.

We’ll also benefit from the rise of electric vehicles – cutting much of the emissions from daily driving.

But as we’ve shown, these changes take time.

And that’s where a lot of us struggle.

The truth is, it’s hard to prepare for dangers that are far away. If you know a hurricane is coming tomorrow, you know what you need to do: weatherproof the house, stockpile necessities, and get relatives somewhere safe.

If you know that a hurricane is coming 50 years down the line, it’s not so straightforward.

That’s where investing comes in. (This is an investing newsletter – you knew that was coming.)

When you invest for the long term, you’re setting money aside for the future. As experts often say, you shouldn’t invest your rent money. You should be able to lock away your investments for years, or even decades.

As you focus on making money while doing good, you’re in a great position.

By investing in a sustainable future, you’re getting into massive trends early. That means you have the breathing room to see those returns soar.

Think about the investors who jumped into the e-commerce trend.

In the past 10 years, eBay (EBAY) investors could’ve made 130% as the stock soared from around $20 per share to around $47 today.

And Amazon (AMZN) rose by orders of magnitude, from $12 in 2012 to $121 today – that’s a 900% gain.

Even better, investing in responsible companies can help you sleep well at night. You’ll know that your money is working to do good.

We’re realistic here at Mangrove – we know that we have a lot of work ahead of us.

But we’re also excited.

The opportunities we see in the conscientious investing space are going to be massive.

We’re glad to have you on board.

– Annie Stevenson

Numbers to Know

1 billion

Number of trees the U.S. government will plant across burned woodlands in western states. Wildfires have destroyed 5.6 million acres so far in the U.S. this year, putting 2022 on pace for record-high damage. (The Associated Press)

80 gallons

The new daily limit of water per person in Southern California – a 35% reduction from the average daily usage. Amid the worst drought in the state’s history, the new rules also limit lawn watering to one day a week. Authorities urged residents to conserve water however they can, such as by not refilling their swimming pool. (Los Angeles Times)

What’s New in Sustainable Investing

Plug Power to build a green hydrogen hub in Europe

U.S. company Plug Power (PLUG) will start construction on the hub project in Belgium in 2023. The plant will supply 12,500 metric tons of green hydrogen – fuel created using renewable energy – to industries across Europe. This new facility is part of Belgium’s plan to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions 80% by 2050. (Recharge)

New York approves the state’s largest solar farm

The $500 million project across the towns of Elba and Oakfield will supply 920,000 MWh of electricity per year – enough to power 120,000 New York homes. Developer Hecate Energy says the solar farm will take up 3,000 acres and will start construction in 2023. Hecate expects to hire 495 full-time employees for the project. (PR Newswire)

Links We Like

• “Despite rising costs associated with inflation, consumers are willing to pay more for sustainable products. […] However, 78 percent of respondents say they don’t know how to identify environmentally friendly companies.” (Convenience Store News)
• “[Insecticides] can evaporate into the air or run off with rainwater, polluting waterways. Recognizing a growing demand for more sustainable crop protection, FMC recently announced a deal to buy Danish insect-control startup BioPhero for $200 million.” (The Philadelphia Inquirer)
• “Tech workers are walking away from high-paying jobs with great perks to help fight what they believe is the greatest existential problem of our lifetimes: climate change. In some cases, that has meant taking a pay cut.” (CNBC)