What can we do to make our work stabilizing the planet’s climate spread across the business landscape?
When we think about tipping points and climate change, it’s usually in a negative way — the point of no return where catastrophic impacts are unavoidable. But what about positive tipping points?
Global leaders agree that innovative technologies are critical for a sustainable future. At the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26), leaders pledged to make clean technologies and sustainable solutions more affordable and accessible than those that harm our climate by 2030.
Solution providers play a vital role in triggering these positive tipping points by influencing the widespread implementation of clean technology.
What are positive tipping points?
Climate tipping points are usually mentioned in the same breath as negative and irreversible transformation, such as droughts in the Amazon rainforest, ice sheets melting in the Antarctic, and fires in the Boreal forest.
However, research from Professor Tim Lenton, Director of the Global Systems Institute (GSI) at the University of Exeter, suggests that positive tipping points can be triggered to combat climate change. This can be triggered by small, intentional interventions that lead to large, transformative system changes.
How can solution providers trigger positive tipping points?
In his paper, “Operationalising positive tipping points towards global sustainability,” Lenton identifies steps that companies can take to trigger positive tipping points. For a solution provider, these can be interpreted as a blueprint for how to influence the broad implementation of their solutions.
It’s important to note that these positive tipping points aren’t inevitable and need to be brought about by collective action.
Here are four ways that solution providers can trigger positive tipping points through clean technology adoption:
- Social community: Social networks are integral for information sharing, innovation, and transformation. Businesses can raise awareness and demand for cleantech by participating in coalitions, movements, and working groups.
Solution providers greatly benefit by joining an ecosystem of partners and building strong social networks. This provides the opportunity to collaborate with peers, gain industry insights, and build relationships with prospective customers.
- Technical innovation: Solution providers play a critical role in technological innovation through their products and services. Smart innovators give their customers the opportunity to contribute to the fight against climate change while saving on energy in the process.
Businesses that continuously innovate have a distinct advantage over the competition. They are more able to evolve with industry changes, increase access to their products, and continue adding value to become more desirable in the marketplace.
- Affordability and accessibility: Affordability and accessibility are two key drivers for businesses introducing clean technologies. When a solution provider offers their product at an affordable price, it stimulates consumer demand. This can trigger a positive tipping point through mass adoption.
Companies also need to make their technology convenient and accessible to encourage widespread use. A solution provider can increase access to their product by working with an ecosystem of partners that includes lenders investing in clean technology. This will streamline your sales process, making it easier for companies to start saving on energy and reducing emissions.
- Complementary technology: No technical solution by itself can trigger a positive tipping point to tackle climate change. Companies must work together to coordinate and integrate complementary technologies.
This is where strategic partnerships come into play. Solution providers can access expertise, expand their reach, add value for customers, increase revenue, and gain a competitive advantage by creating mutually-beneficial partnerships. By connecting each company’s unique strengths and capabilities, businesses can increase their scalability and growth.
How EnPowered can help
It’s hard for a solution provider to implement these suggestions independently. Transformation of this magnitude doesn’t happen alone. Companies need access to an ecosystem of partners and lenders, expertise in the energy sector, and a community with a shared vision to trigger positive tipping points for clean technology. That’s where EnPowered will help.
EnPowered builds partnerships with solution providers and lenders to help trigger the widespread adoption of their technologies. By partnering with EnPowered, businesses allow their customers to pay for their clean technology projects through a portion of their energy-related savings. This allows our partners to increase their revenue by providing more value to their customers.
When solution providers use EnPowered’s Payments platform, they offer a convenient on-bill payment solution for their customers, making their products more affordable and accessible. With Payments, businesses can streamline their sales cycle, simplify operations, and win more deals faster.
Ready to learn more? Contact us today to discover how EnPowered can help you make your energy solutions more affordable, accessible, and competitive.
