David Potere at BCG X: Using AI & Satellites in Climate Solutions
- 13 MAY 2026
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- Climate Rising
AI and geospatial technologies are transforming how industries understand and respond
to climate challenges. David Potere, Managing Director and Partner at BCG X, joins
Climate Rising to describe how sensing, decision-making, and automation are reshaping
and decarbonizing sectors like agriculture and energy. The conversation examines how
satellite data, AI models, and real-time sensing systems are enabling new levels of
transparency—from methane emissions in energy systems to crop yields and wildfire
risks. David discusses the concept of “Industry 4.0” in outdoor environments, where
deploying technology is significantly more complex than in controlled factory settings.
The episode also highlights emerging applications in agriculture, energy infrastructure,
and climate resilience, and explores how advances in AI and data systems are lowering
barriers to innovation. David reflects on the future of consulting, the democratization
of technology, and the growing role of builders in solving climate challenges.
AI and geospatial technologies are transforming how industries understand and respond
to climate challenges. David Potere, Managing Director and Partner at BCG X, joins
Climate Rising to describe how sensing, decision-making, and automation are reshaping
and decarbonizing sectors like agriculture and energy. The conversation examines how
satellite data, AI models, and real-time sensing systems are enabling new levels of
transparency—from methane emissions in energy systems to crop yields and wildfire
risks. David discusses the concept of “Industry 4.0” in outdoor environments, where
deploying technology is significantly more complex than in controlled factory settings.
The episode also highlights emerging applications in agriculture, energy infrastructure,
and climate resilience, and explores how advances in AI and data systems are lowering
barriers to innovation. David reflects on the future of consulting, the democratization
of technology, and the growing role of builders in solving climate challenges.
Lessons in Top-Level Sustainability from Harvard Business School
- 07 May 2026
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- Facilitiesnet
Why Boston’s Biggest Institutions Should Co-Invest in Climate Protection
By: John Macomber
- 17 Apr 2026
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- CommonWealth Beacon
Reinventing the Toilet for Global Health and the Environment
Re: Maria Roche
- 15 Apr 2026
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- Harvard Business School
Why Is EV Charging So Unreliable? The Effects of Competition on Supplementary Service Quality
- 2026
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- Working Paper
Supplementary services—such as coffee shops providing free wi-fi and airlines offering airport lounges—are increasingly important to operational performance and customer experience. Yet little is known about what drives variation in their quality. While prior research shows that competition improves core service quality, we theorize that its effects on supplementary service quality depends on the source of competition. Competition from establishments offering the same core service enhances supplementary service quality, whereas competition from those offering different core services diminishes it. We test our hypotheses using data on the reliability of U.S. public EV charging stations, a widely-offered supplementary service across hotels, retailers, parking facilities, and other establishments. Analyzing 49,902 charging stations with 805,639 consumer reviews from 2011 to 2024, we apply machine learning methods to measure charging reliability. We find that competition among establishments offering the same core service is associated with higher reliability, suggesting that the positive effects of core service competition spill over to the quality of supplementary services. In contrast, competition from charging establishments with different core services is associated with lower station reliability. This latter effect is more consequential, as most nearby charging competitors provide different core services. Our results indicate that, within our sample period, a one-standard-deviation increase in such competition is associated with a 10.4% to 32.2% decline in service reliability scores over the subsequent five years. These findings have important implications for firms’ demand management and for public policy aimed at improving EV charging infrastructure performance.
OCP Group: Transforming for a Sustainable Future (A)
- MAY 2026
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- Teaching Material
Pre-abstract: Instructors should consider the timing of making the (B) Case videos available to students, as they may reveal key case details. Abstract: In 2025, Mostafa Terrab, Chairman of Morocco mining and fertilizer giant OCP, is assessing his senior leadership team's progress on collaboration and synergies across his recently decentralized organization and his ambitious decarbonization goals. Terrab committed OCP to 100% carbon neutrality across scopes 1 and 2 by 2030, and scope 3 by 2040. One piece of this puzzle is cracking the code for producing green ammonia, a key input in OCP's phosphate-based fertilizers. Terrab felt that synergies across OCP were at risk as was his green ammonia efforts. Terrab is concerned the managing directors continue to focus on their own SBU's goals rather than working together across their units to unleash their (and OCP's) full potential. Further, Terrab's aspiration for decarbonization across OCP is expensive. His green ammonia effort, a way to potentially revolutionize agriculture, is being resisted because of cost issues and technology questions.
OCP Group: Transforming for a Sustainable Future (B)
- MAY 2026
- |
- Teaching Material
Pre-abstract: Instructors should consider the timing of making the (B) Case videos available to students, as they may reveal key case details. Abstract: In 2025, Mostafa Terrab, Chairman of Morocco mining and fertilizer giant OCP, is assessing his senior leadership team's progress on collaboration and synergies across his recently decentralized organization and his ambitious decarbonization goals. Terrab committed OCP to 100% carbon neutrality across scopes 1 and 2 by 2030, and scope 3 by 2040. One piece of this puzzle is cracking the code for producing green ammonia, a key input in OCP's phosphate-based fertilizers. Terrab felt that synergies across OCP were at risk as was his green ammonia efforts. Terrab is concerned the managing directors continue to focus on their own SBU's goals rather than working together across their units to unleash their (and OCP's) full potential. Further, Terrab's aspiration for decarbonization across OCP is expensive. His green ammonia effort, a way to potentially revolutionize agriculture, is being resisted because of cost issues and technology questions.
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