Implementing Green Chemistry Post-Pandemic: Challenges and Opportunities for Business- Part I
It has now been over a month of living under conditions of social distancing and during that time the full scale of the disaster caused by the Coronavirus has become apparent. Not only has there been horrible loss of life and enormous personal toll to families who have lost loved ones, the economic consequences of the pandemic have been dire. Unemployment has skyrocketed as people stay at home to protect themselves and their communities, and governments are scrambling to get financial aid to those affected to help in the immediate term. There remains enormous uncertainty around the recovery: How long before there is a return to some sort of normal and what does this new-normal look like? How long will the “dance” to mitigate a return of the epidemic last? Economically, what industries will be most impacted, and can critical industries come back stronger and more resilient toward future disasters?
I’ve been thinking about these issues in the context of green chemistry, and how rebuilding the post-pandemic world will have a major impact on the implementation of sustainable technologies in industry. As the virus is still claiming lives and a potential vaccine is over a year away, these issues may seem less important. However, in the larger context of building a better, more pandemic resistant future, greener technologies will be key. An important part of this will be striving to reduce climate change, including the frequency and intensity of climate disasters. Doing so can help reduce the chances of interspecies transmission of viruses such as the one responsible for Covid-19. The implementation of green chemistry in business also has the potential to improve access to life-saving technologies and materials, strengthen the supply chains for essential items, and to improve the robustness of the economy.
Although it is still early to sort out the cascading effects the pandemic will have on various parts of the economy, there are already trends emerging that will impact how new green technologies can be brought to market and implemented. These can be framed as terms of challenges and opportunities. For the remainder of this post, I’ll share what I think are some of the major challenges and how they can be approached. I will get to my thoughts on potential opportunities in Part Two to be posted in the coming days. Hopefully, this post can spur discussion around how green chemistry and sustainability can fit into our post-pandemic future and how implementation in industry can lead to a more resilient and environmentally friendly society.
Challenges:
1. The business climate for investment is poor: We have gone from over a decade of steady business expansion to a major contraction in many sectors in just two months. While some chemical-based businesses are by nature more resilient/recession proof (business based on selling essentials), it is hard to imagine that most companies will not feel the impact of the rapid downturn. Less revenue will force businesses to put a laser focus on cashflow and this means investments in new or disruptive tech will be cancelled or delayed. Entrepreneurs developing corporate partnerships should prepare for these projects to be put on hold. Perhaps most discouragingly, all signs point to the economic recovery being drawn out. For innovators in various stages of commercialization this will mean a major adjustment to development plans.
So, what can innovators and entrepreneurs do to keep things moving forward? Aside from reducing spending and slowing work down significantly, there may be options to build relationships with publicly funded agencies and labs, universities, or incubators. Many organizations are now sponsoring competitions to source solutions for better address the pandemic. For example, there is an immediate need for easier and faster testing technologies and these challenges require better materials and robust chemistry. This may be a chance for SMEs and startups to re-examine their current products and potentially branch out into new markets.
Once the initial economic shock has passed, I am optimistic that governments will move forward with programs that can support innovators that have been impacted by the economic downturn, especially if their work can be linked to addressing systemic issues laid bare by the pandemic. Now would be a good time to leverage your network and stay connected in anticipation of this support.
2. Public focus has shifted almost entirely to Covid-19: Since the current public health crisis is the worst in over a century, the overwhelming attention it has received from the public and the scientific community is both justified and necessary. For those working on sustainable technologies however, it may seem the work done to raise the challenges of sustainability in the public consciousness and to communicate our efforts to find solutions has been forgotten. Having public buy-in on sustainability is critical for success in introducing greener products and cleaner processes, so this shift in attention adds to the uncertainty for those about to enter the market. That’s understandable, but it’s clear our climate and environmental crisis is a much longer-term challenge. The demand for greener solutions will still be there long after we have tamed the pandemic.
I would argue that the pandemic and its economic fallout are just one manifestation of larger sustainability and environmental challenges that we must rise to meet as a global community. Climate change will affect seasonality, and warmer temperatures will lead to greater weather disasters and floods. These environmental conditions can favour interspecies spread of viruses, affect water sanitation, and increase the populations of pathogen vectors such as mosquitoes. Climate change will have serious public health consequences, and mitigation offers the chance to minimize the scale and impact (human health, economic, and social) of future outbreaks.
Although the pandemic is the current focus, innovators in cleantech and sustainability should remember they are working on a challenge of even greater scale and continue to make the case that their efforts will contribute to mitigating future public health crises.
3. Global implementation likely got harder: Technologies that were to be introduced in foreign markets or that relied on sourcing from overseas suppliers may have just become more challenging to implement. In this regard, there is likely a significant disparity between larger multinational corporations with sites located around the world and smaller companies and start-ups. Larger companies are much better suited to navigating the current uncertainty in the global economy and being able to develop a business response that can adapt to conditions in the countries in which they operate. Every country has had a different response to the pandemic, and in restricting the flow of people and goods. Additionally, the global economy has been knocked out of equilibrium (the demand shock leading to record lows in oil prices as storing the stuff becomes problematic is just one example). The economy will get back a form of normalcy required for business decisions to be made with a degree of confidence, but it will take months.
Businesses focusing on green chemistry technologies may need to be patient before being able to pursue international plans. However, this may also be a chance for smaller businesses to focus on operations in their home countries and to seek out opportunities to develop local supply chains and markets. In the long run, this could improve the position of a business to better manage future disruptions.
4. How we communicate and collaborate has changed: The pandemic has led to the cancellation of nearly all scientific meetings and conferences scheduled for spring and summer of 2020. These conferences are an important way for green chemistry experts and leaders to connect and share ideas. Some industry focused events such as the Green Chemistry and Commerce Council (GC3) European Innovators Roundtable that was to occur this April have been postponed. Other pitch competitions and in-person accelerator events have been cancelled or moved online.
While moving scientific and business meetings online is viable in many contexts, virtual interactions are cumbersome for interactive events featuring networking and workshops. It may be best to focus on making quality connections and on maintaining your current network. Since so many people are now working virtually, an online presence may have greater impact than prior to the pandemic.
The shift to virtual meetings offers the potential to expand the reach and inclusiveness of some important discussions. For example, the annual ACS Green Chemistry and Engineering (GC&E) Conference that was to happen in Seattle this June is now being transitioned to a virtual event that is free for anyone to attend. As a participant and session organizer, I’m excited to make this happen and also to hear from some people who wouldn’t normally be able to attend. I hope that the greater inclusiveness fostered by online interactions is retained once pandemic restrictions are lifted.
These are some immediate challenges that I see to innovators in sustainability and green chemistry for the next year or so. The key for innovators in green chemistry will be to stay adaptable and be creative in their development work. In my next post I’ll discuss what I think are some important opportunities for green chemistry to make an impact post-pandemic.