Persistent droughts, historic floods, and killer heat waves: climate change is a growing threat to humanity. But climatetech may help us overcome this threat.

But what exactly is climatetech?

Simply put, climatetech refers to a wide range of technologies to improve resilience or mitigate climate change and its effects. Climatetech covers a few major areas, though there can be overlap in many cases.

Energy

Climatetech in the energy realm covers electricity generation, distribution, and storage. This includes renewables like wind, solar, and wave power, batteries, smart grids, hydrogen, and biofuels.

Transportation

We'll still need to get from point A to point B. Transportation climatetech includes electric vehicles, transit, and supply chain transportation.

Infrastructure

Buildings, roads, and other infrastructure are another target for innovation. Better building materials and construction techniques and improved energy efficiency are a few topics of interest.

Manufacturing

Manufacturing is a broad area that influences other climatetech realms. This includes recycling, reclamation, and circular industrial processes; new materials; and energy efficient manufacturing to name just a few areas.

Agriculture and water

No matter what, we still gotta eat. Climatetech work in this category covers crops that are healthier or resistant to hazards like drought. Reduced carbon dioxide and methane output from animal agriculture is another target for climatetech.

Better handling of water resources, including pollution remediation and stormwater management, are other climatetech targets.

Putting it all together

Climatetech innovations may provide ways to repair the climate, reduce our impact, and mitigate the effects of climate change.

It's not a silver bullet, but innovations and smart choices could help stave off disaster and maybe even help us live better lives.