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Hey everyone, welcome to this week’s FutureProof - my Tech and Sustainability Digest. Climate Week is taking place in New York this week, so I’m going to hit on a couple of the stories coming out of there, as well as the usual mix of AI, Electromobility, and CleanTech stories.
As always this newsletter is dedicated to surfacing and sharing good news stories across tech and sustainability. If good news sounds like something you need, read on. And please share this newsletter with anyone/everyone else you feel could do with a little cheering up!
Now, on with the stories:
Climate
UN Rallies, Trump Rants: Science Still Wins
World leaders, 120 countries plus the EU, just dropped fresh climate targets in New York, hot on the heels of Trump declaring the whole crisis a “con job.” António Guterres wasn’t having it: “The science demands action, the law commands it, the economics compel it.” China pledged to slash emissions 7–10% by 2035 and massively scale solar and wind. Meanwhile, the US is busy torching its own credibility.
Key highlights:
120 countries + EU announced new emission-cutting targets; China leads with a 7–10% cut from peak by 2035
UN chief Guterres warned 1.5°C is “at risk of collapsing” and called for “much further, much faster” action ahead of COP30 in Brazil
Trump dismissed climate science as a “hoax” and urged more oil drilling, drawing sharp rebukes and ridicule from political leaders worldwide
Why This Matters: Despite Trump’s fossil-fuel nostalgia, the overwhelming majority of countries are doubling down on clean energy, and China is seizing the mantle of global climate leadership.
Kismet: Last year, the world invested twice as much in renewables as in fossil fuels, $2 trillion vs $1 trillion, a fact Trump’s speechwriters “forgot” to mention. 👉 Full story here
Vanuatu vs Big Oil: Tiny Island, Giant Punch
While Trump rants about windmills, Vanuatu is quietly trying to rewire the rules of the world. Fresh off the historic ICJ ruling that states are legally obliged to protect the climate, the Pacific nation is pushing a UN resolution to clip the fossil industry’s stranglehold on politics, and maybe, finally, force compliance through international law.
Key highlights:
The ICJ declared climate protection a binding duty under international law, opening states up to reparations if they fail
Vanuatu, long a climate diplomacy pioneer, is spearheading a UN vote to make the ruling actionable and limit fossil-fuel industry influence
Fossil lobbies spent $445m in the last US election cycle; Trump rewarded them with $18bn in tax breaks while slashing green rules
Why This Matters: A nation of 330,000 people is leading the legal charge to hold the biggest polluters accountable, proving size doesn’t define power, courage does.
Kismet: Vanuatu also coined the idea of a Loss & Damage fund… back in 1992. It took the rest of the world three decades to catch up. 👉 Full story here
Colombia Calls Time on Fossil Fuels
Colombia has announced it will host the world’s first fossil fuel phase-out summit in April 2026, a Global South–led push to accelerate the end of coal, oil and gas. The move comes as a new report warns governments are planning twice the fossil expansion allowed under Paris, making Colombia’s stance not just bold, but essential.
Key highlights:
Summit aims to create a roadmap for a just and equitable fossil fuel exit, with backing from 17 countries in the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty discussions
Production Gap Report shows top 20 producers are planning a 120% overshoot in coal, oil and gas by 2030 compared to Paris-aligned levels
Colombia’s environment minister Irene Vélez says the conference will prioritise “life, equity and sustainability over destruction and inequality”
Why This Matters: This summit could turn the still-theoretical Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty into real political muscle, exactly the kind of mechanism I argued for in my blog post. And coming just months after the ICJ victory, it shows legal and political fronts are now converging against fossil dependence.
Kismet: Fossil fuels aren’t just overproduced, they’re over-subsidised. Globally, governments handed $7 trillion in fossil subsidies in 2022, more than the GDP of Japan. 👉 Full story here
AI News
Chrome Gets a Brain Upgrade (and a Bodyguard)
Google just rolled out the biggest Chrome update ever, stuffing Gemini AI deep into the browser. It’ll book your haircut, recall that walnut desk site you forgot, block scammy pop-ups, and even change your hacked passwords with a single click. Chrome isn’t just a browser anymore, it’s your slightly overeager assistant that also happens to fight off scammers.
Key highlights:
Gemini in Chrome can summarise across tabs, recall past sites, and integrate directly with Calendar, Maps, and YouTube
AI-powered protections now flag dodgy notifications, stop fake virus pop-ups, and quietly learn your preferences for permissions
One-click password resets on sites like Spotify, Duolingo, and H&M are coming, finally ending the copy-paste nightmare
Why This Matters: Browsers are no longer just windows to the internet; they’re fast becoming AI-powered gatekeepers shaping how we experience and secure the web.
Kismet: Chrome’s AI already blocks 3 billion junk notifications every single day, almost half the size of the entire global population in alerts stopped before you even see them. 👉 Full story here
AI-Powered Ice Cream: Magnum Joins the Party
Magnum (yes, the ice cream company) is teaming up with Chilean food-tech darling NotCo to reimagine its lineup. Expect AI-formulated plant-based pints, calorie-smarter treats, and ingredient swaps to tackle rising cocoa costs. Turns out the future of indulgence might be coded in Python.
Key highlights:
Magnum will use NotCo’s AI to create new products, cut calories, and manage volatile commodity prices
The focus is on smaller portions, more sustainable plant-based options, and swapping out synthetic ingredients
NotCo has already partnered with Kraft Heinz on AI-designed mac & cheese, mayo, and cheese singles
Why This Matters: Food AI isn’t just a gimmick, it’s helping companies meet consumer demand for healthier, greener treats while shielding them from raw ingredient chaos.
Kismet: NotCo’s AI once helped spark a viral hit called Dubai chocolate - proof that algorithms can whip up flavours humans wouldn’t dream of (and somehow make them sell). 👉 Full story here
Electromobility
Sydney’s Buses Get a Shockingly Fast Makeover
New South Wales just opened its first fully electric bus depot in Brookvale, fitted with gantry-mounted chargers that can juice a bus with 300 km of range in just 20 minutes. This is the first of 11 depots to be converted, part of the state’s plan to flip its 8,000-strong bus fleet from diesel to electric.
Key highlights:
Brookvale depot conversion cost $25m, with 13 pantograph chargers + 10 plug-in stations for up to 229 e-buses
Depot power is backed by a 250kW rooftop solar system to cover operations
NSW has already ordered 151 new electric buses from local manufacturers, aiming to fully retire diesel by 2028
Why This Matters: Electrification isn’t just about cars anymore, buses, trucks, and freight are plugging in too, delivering cleaner air and quieter streets for millions.
Kismet: China already has around 600,000 electric buses on the road, proof this isn’t some pilot project, it’s a global transport revolution revving up. 👉 Full story here
Germany Hits the Accelerator on EVs
EV registrations in Germany surged 35% in the first half of 2025, smashing records with nearly 249,000 new plug-ins hitting the road. Charging infrastructure is keeping pace too, with 20,000 new public chargers added, and running an EV is now cheaper than petrol or diesel in four out of five common use cases. Industry, however, is split, carmakers unveil flashy new EVs at Munich’s auto show while lobbying Brussels to roll back the 2035 combustion ban.
Key highlights:
249,000 new EVs registered in H1 2025, up 35% year-on-year, and 13% higher than the 2023 record
Germany now has 184,000 public chargers, up 20,000 in just six months
Charging at home averages €884/year vs €1,258 for diesel and €1,306 for petrol
Why This Matters: Germany isn’t just Europe’s biggest car market, it’s a bellwether for the global auto industry, and the data shows electric mobility is now financially irresistible.
Kismet: BYD, China’s EV juggernaut, is expanding aggressively into Europe, proof that while German brands argue about regulation, Chinese companies are eating their lunch. 👉 Full story here
Clean Energy
Renewables Keep Rising
Global investment in renewables hit a record $386 billion in the first half of 2025 - up 10% on last year, despite the Trump White House yanking support for clean projects. Analysts say growth has slowed slightly but remains rock-solid, with low-carbon energy expected to pull in more than double the money going to fossil fuels by year’s end.
Key highlights:
$386bn poured into renewable tech in H1 2025, a 10% year-on-year rise
Total low-carbon investment is on track to be more than twice fossil fuel spending in 2025
Momentum shows resilience even as the US government tries to roll back clean energy
Why This Matters: Markets are voting with their wallets, and they’re betting big on clean energy, regardless of political sabotage.
Kismet: In 2022, clean energy investment finally surpassed fossil fuel investment for the first time in history; now, just three years later, it’s pulling away like a Formula E car overtaking a wheezing diesel. 👉 Full story here
China Builds a Power Line the Size of a Continent
China just broke ground on a $7.5 billion ultra-high voltage direct current line that will carry clean power 2,681 km, from the hydro, solar and wind-rich Xizang plateau all the way to the energy-hungry Greater Bay Area. Once live in 2029, it’ll deliver 43 billion kWh of green electricity annually, cutting 33 million tonnes of CO₂ and saving the equivalent of 12 million tonnes of coal.
Key highlights:
World’s largest clean electricity DC line: 2,681 km long, $7.5bn investment, 10 GW capacity
Will supply half the output of the Three Gorges Dam every year to Guangdong & Hong Kong
Expected to create 100,000 jobs and attract $14bn in related industrial investment
Why This Matters: Clean energy needs clean transmission, and China’s grid-building spree shows that scaling renewables isn’t just about turbines and panels, it’s about the highways for electrons connecting them.
Kismet: Xizang already generates 99% of its electricity from clean sources, the highest share of any region in China, a stat that makes most Western countries look positively fossil-addicted. 👉 Full story here
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Latest Podcasts
Climate Confident:
Small Islands, Big Ideas — Emily Wilkinson on Climate Resilience
This week on Climate Confident, I spoke with Emily Wilkinson, Principal Research Fellow at ODI Global and Director of the Resilient and Sustainable Islands Initiative. We dug into how small island developing states, responsible for less than 1% of global emissions, are facing existential threats like rising seas and Category 5 storms, and yet are leading with some of the most innovative solutions: climate-resilient debt clauses, debt-for-nature swaps, and even turning invasive seaweed into clean fuel.
Key highlights:
Small island states face existential risk: some atoll nations may disappear entirely as sea levels rise
Financial innovation: debt clauses that pause repayments after disasters, and swaps that channel funds into biodiversity and climate adaptation
Innovation on the ground: floating solar in lagoons, seaweed-to-biogas projects, and Dominica’s audacious goal to become the world’s first climate-resilient nation
Why This Matters: The countries least responsible for the crisis are pioneering solutions the rest of us will soon need, they’re the reluctant canary islands in the climate coal mine.
Kismet: Just one hurricane in 2017 caused damage in Dominica worth 226% of its GDP, imagine Ireland or Germany wiped out twice over in a single storm. 🎧 Listen to the full episode
Sustainable Supply Chain:
Ethical Swag: Rethinking Branded Merch with Tara Milburn
On episode 86 of the Sustainable Supply Chain Podcast, I sat down with Tara Milburn, founder & CEO of Ethical Swag. We explored how the humble promo product, pens, tote bags, hoodies, can either scream hypocrisy or showcase authentic values. Tara’s B Corp-certified company is proving that sustainable sourcing, transparency, and impact reporting can transform what’s usually waste into something that actually builds trust.
Key highlights:
Ethical Swag maps every product to the UN Sustainable Development Goals and uses third-party audits to weed out greenwashing
Tara champions “sustainability as the new digital” - embedded everywhere, not siloed in one department
Innovations include plantable seed paper business cards and swag that doubles as a storytelling tool for brands
Why This Matters: Even the smallest procurement choices, like what you slap your logo on, ripple into brand trust, supply chain transparency, and environmental impact.
Kismet: Just one receptionist at a new job with a $500 budget bought seed paper business cards from Ethical Swag - and ended up changing how her whole company thought about sustainable sourcing. 🎧 Listen to the full episode
Coming Soon to the podcasts
In the coming episodes I will be talking to Dag Calafell, Director of Tech Innovation for MCA Connect, and Gary Yohe, Climate Economist, and IPCC Author.
Don’t forget to follow the podcasts in your podcast app of choice to ensure you don’t miss any episodes.
TikToks!
As a bit of an experiment, I started publishing a series of one-minute EV Myth Busting videos on TikTok in English and in Spanish. Here’s an example of an English one
@tom.raftery Think EV batteries cause more mining than oil? Fossil fuels = 84% of global mining. Battery metals = 0.01%. Fossil fuels are burned once. ... See more
And here’s the same one, this time in Spanish
@tom.raftery ¿Piensas que la minería de baterías es peor que el petróleo? ⛏️ Combustibles fósiles = 84% de la minería mundial. Metales de baterías = 0,... See more
Featured Chart
And loosely related to the TikTok’s above, the amount of mining done every year for critical minerals (lithium, nickel, cobalt, etc.) is 0.008% of all the mining done. Fossil fuel mining accounts for 84.35% of annual mining. So next time you hear someone moaning about all the mining being done for EVs, just think how much more is being done for ICE vehicles!
Curious about the carbon footprint of solar panels - I gotcha covered!
EVs are far more energy efficient than ICE vehicles.
Misc stuff
Unbelievable - even in movies where the main character is a woman, still most of the talking is done by men!
Engage
If you made it this far, very well done! If you liked this newsletter, or learned something new, feel free to share this newsletter with family and friends. Encourage folks to sign up for it.
Finally, since being impacted by the tech layoffs, I'm currently in the market for a new role. If you know someone who could benefit from my tech savvy, sustainability, and strong social media expertise, I'd be really grateful for a referral.
If you have any comments or suggestions for how I can improve this newsletter, don’t hesitate to let me know. Thanks.
*** Be aware that any typos you find in this newsletter are tests to see who is paying attention! ***
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