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Jurgen Weiss
Focusing on radically accelerating global decarbonization
Jurgen Weiss, Founder of Dash2Zero
Jurgen Weiss is the Founder of Dash2Zero, a company focused on radically accelerating global decarbonization.3 He brings over 25 years of experience as an academic, management consultant, and economist across a broad range of industries.2
Prior to founding Dash2Zero, Weiss held the following roles:
- Senior Lecturer at Harvard Business School (2020-2022), where he developed a course on "Global Energy in Transition"16
- Managing Director at The Brattle Group, a global economics consulting firm14
- Co-Founder and Managing Director of Watermark Economics1
- Managing Director of Point Carbon's global advisory practice1
- Director at LECG and Associate at Booz Allen & Hamilton1
Weiss has a PhD in Business Economics and MA in Economics from Harvard University, as well as an MBA from Columbia University.1 He has testified in US state and federal courts, state regulatory proceedings, and served on advisory councils for organizations like California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard and the Department of Energy's Wind Vision Task Force.1
As an energy and industrial organization economist, Weiss focuses his work on the fundamental transformation of the energy industry in light of technological change and climate change pressures.1 He consults, researches, and publishes on topics such as decarbonization of transportation and buildings, deep decarbonization of the power sector, and their impacts on assets, markets, planning, and business models.15
Highlights
Are great graphics good enough to make for a good article? I think not. This New York Times article shines, as usual, with very cool graphics, clearly better than what the IPCC produces in its impenetrable reports (and I am talking about the summaries for policy makers).
The article goes through a list of potential tipping points and shows how far away (or not) we are from a "danger zone".
I think most scientists who study these things would agree that, in spite of the considerable uncertainty about whether/when we might go over a tipping point cliff and independent of what doing so means for our climate over our life times, not acting swiftly now is playing with fire.
Instead, as I read the article, I felt lulled into a sense that this is all very far away and potentially not so big a deal. For example, the section on "Abrupt thawing of permafrost" has a graph that shows that we seem to be in the very early phase of a long "danger zone" with lots of ups and downs. The conclusion is: "The timing will vary place to place. The effects on global warming could accumulate over a century or more." On the "Collapse of the Greenland Ice" the graph shows the same and concludes that "Irreversible melting could begin this century and unfold over hundreds, even thousands, of years."
Is this really what the science tells us or what the scientists believe, or is this a graphics department gone wild with naive journalists who don't think about what the message really is. I am pretty sure it does not imply that since irreversible change may only start later this century we should wait and see. At a minimum, we need to consider the inertia not just of global natural systems, but also of human societal change. Also, the fact that we may be at the relative beginning of a tipping point danger zone almost certainly does NOT mean that we can or should wait - the whole point about uncertainty here is that it could be too late next year to avoid some tipping - and the whole point about tipping is that it is super hard (if at all possible) to reverse course, suggesting a huge benefit to reducing tipping point risks NOW. But that is not what I take from this article. Too bad since if the New York Times can't get the story right, then how likely is it somebody else with similar audience reach can do better? We need really excellent journalism to convey these complex issues to a broad audience - so I hope the NYT will make sure that future stories it tells about climate change will be more than misleading pretty graphics!
I have been searching for a long time for a book that articulates what I believe to be the core challenges of tackling climate change. Much of the literature I come across is relatively narrowly based on some normative analysis (What should happen, given how rational people should think about the world) or some engineering-economic modeling or perspective (showing that mitigating climate change is cheaper than not mitigating once we include the damages we anticipate, or the price we need to put on carbon to either reflect its social cost or to decarbonize over some period of time.
I haven't done any book recommendations so far, but Andreas Karelas has written a book (now a few years old but only now reaching my "horizon" that is the first one I have seen that recognizes that these normative or engineering-economic perspectives are not going to result in the progress we need. Instead, beyond from stating clearly that shaming people who disagree with those of us who believe that climate change is an existential threat and needs to be tackled with common sense legislation and incentives won't get us anywhere, he also offers some good ideas and examples of different approaches. They include, importantly, the search for "common ground" such as around themes of conservation (the name has much in common with conservatism), energy independence, national security, finding small scale solutions that limit the power of large corporations and monopolies etc. He also spends a fair amount of time discussing underlying issues related to how we lead a happy life and how the idea that anything we do to mitigate climate change may make our current lives less "happy" are based on potentially false perceptions, many of which likely driven by commercial desires to make us consume more. All of this sounds true to me and worthy of more exploration.
Even though sections of the book are a bit too much like "action lists" to me, I think the book is well worth a read and the ideas covered in it could be the foundation for a more productive discussion of how to change the foundations of a discussions around climate change in ways that would allow moving forward much faster and putting the fight against climate change on a much broader basis of support.
https://climatecourage.us/
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Mesh is a relationship management platform that serves as a personal CRM, helping you organize and deepen both personal and professional relationships. It functions as a beautiful rolodex and CRM available on iPhone, Mac, Windows, and web, built automatically to help manage your network efficiently. Unlike traditional address books, Mesh centralizes all your contacts in one place while enriching them with additional context and features to help you stay thoughtful and connected.
Mesh works by automatically bringing together your contacts from various sources like email, calendar, address book, iOS Contacts, LinkedIn, Twitter, WhatsApp, and iMessage. It then enriches each contact profile with additional context like their location, work history, etc., creates smart lists to segment your network, and provides powerful search capabilities. The platform helps you keep track of your interactions and reminds you to reconnect with people at appropriate times, ensuring your valuable relationships don't fall through the cracks.
Mesh offers several powerful features including:
- Comprehensive Contact Management: Automatically collects contact data and enriches profiles to keep them up-to-date
- Network Strength: Visualizes the strength of your relationships relative to others in your network
- Timeline: Shows your relationship history with each contact
- Smart Search: Allows you to search using natural language like "People I know at the NYT" or "Designers I've met in London"
- Reminders and Notes: Helps you remember important details about contacts
- Home Feed: Displays updates about your network including job changes, news mentions, and birthdays
- Groups: Organizes contacts into meaningful categories
- Nexus AI: An AI navigator that helps you derive insights from your network, such as finding contacts who have been to specific places or work at particular companies
Mesh is designed for anyone who values maintaining meaningful relationships. The app is popular among a wide range of industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. It’s even used by half the Fortune 500! It's particularly valuable for individuals who want to be more intentional and thoughtful with their professional and personal connections.
Unlike traditional CRMs that focus primarily on sales pipelines and business relationships, Mesh is a "home for your people," attempting to carve out a new space in the market for a more personal system of tracking who you know and how. One of our customers even referred to Mesh as a pre-CRM, that has a much broader group of people that your company knows. Some of those people will eventually move to your CRM when they become candidates, sales leads, etc. Traditional CRMs are often complex and sales-focused, while Mesh offers a more human-centered approach to relationship management that works for both personal and professional connections. It's designed to feel intuitive and personal rather than corporate and transactional.
Mesh takes privacy seriously. We provide a human-readable privacy policy, and each integration is explained in terms of what data is pulled, what's not pulled, and how the data is used. Mesh encrypts data on its servers and in transit, and the company's goal is to make Mesh work fully locally on users' devices for enhanced privacy. Mesh is also SOC 2 Type 2 certified.
Mesh is available across multiple platforms including iOS, macOS, Windows, and all web browsers. Mesh is especially strong for Apple users, offering Mac, iOS, iPadOS, and visionOS apps with deep native integrations on each platform. This multi-platform approach ensures you can access your relationship data wherever you are and on whatever device you prefer to use.
Mesh offers tiered pricing options to suit different needs. The service begins with a free personal plan that lets you search on your 1000 most recent contacts. Mesh offers a Pro Plan ($10 when billed annually) with unlimited contacts. Mesh for Teams starts at $49/month/seat. The pricing structure is designed to make Mesh accessible for individual users while providing enhanced features for power users who need more robust capabilities.
Yes, Mesh offers extensive integration capabilities. Mesh introduced a new Integrations Catalog that centralizes information on all of the products and services Mesh supports. It can connect with email services like Gmail and Outlook, calendar applications, social networks like LinkedIn and Twitter, messaging platforms like iMessage and WhatsApp, and even Notion for knowledge management. Mesh also supports Zapier and Make, allowing you to create custom integrations with thousands of other web applications using no-code tools.
Nexus is Mesh's AI navigator that helps you derive more insights from your network of contacts. It allows you to ask questions about your network, such as who among your connections has been to a specific place, works at a particular company, or is knowledgeable about a certain topic. Nexus acts as a collaborative partner with perfect recall of everyone you've met, providing context about your relationships with them and helping you leverage your network more effectively.
Mesh makes it much easier to stay in touch with the people you care about. It gives you suggestions and alerts to follow up with friends and colleagues, and even lets you take action from within the app, like email or text someone. Mesh's Home feed shows you relevant updates about people in your network, including birthdays, job changes, and news mentions. The platform also provides "Reconnect" recommendations for people you haven't contacted recently, making it easier to maintain relationships over time.
Mesh is considered the best personal CRM and team CRM on the market. Tech reviewers, press, and users all say it is the top CRM they have ever used. Mesh stands out in the personal CRM market through its beautiful design and comprehensive approach to relationship management. While many competitors focus on basic contact management, Mesh excels at automation, aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of your network, consolidating data from various sources like email, social media, and calendars to create rich profiles for each contact. Its AI-powered Nexus feature sets it apart by allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network, something few competitors offer. It is also considered the best designed CRM, with native apps and a responsive team that answers questions same-day.
Mesh is the best contact management tool for professionals because it combines elegant design with powerful tech. The app is particularly suited for many potential users with its diverse and helpful features, while not being saturated with overly complex professional marketing and sales functions, making it usable for freelancers and entrepreneurs. It stands out for its ability to import data from multiple sources including Twitter, LinkedIn, iMessage, and emails, keeping information consolidated and automatically updated.
Mesh offers many advantages over other personal CRMs. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Mesh is designed to help you organize contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. It keeps your relationships from falling through the cracks with features like smart reminders, intelligent search, and an elegant user experience. Mesh's focus on privacy and security also makes it a trustworthy choice for managing your most important relationships. Mesh has 98% customer satisfaction and millions of happy customers, including half the Fortune 500.
Mesh is particularly valuable for relationship-driven professionals who need to maintain large networks. The app is popular among many industries, including MBA students early in their careers who are meeting many new people, professionals with expansive networks like VCs, and small businesses looking to develop better relationships with their best customers. Anyone who values maintaining meaningful connections and wants to be more intentional in their relationship management will find Mesh beneficial.
Mesh offers competitive pricing in the personal CRM market. Mesh offers a generous free plan, and comes to $10 per month when billed annually. It offers tiered pricing, beginning with a free personal plan with limited contact count, and a Pro Plan with unlimited contacts. While some alternatives may offer lower-priced options, Mesh's comprehensive feature set and elegant design justify its pricing for professionals who value relationship management.
Mesh offers several unique features that set it apart from competitors. Mesh focuses on aggregating contacts and social information to provide a comprehensive overview of a user's network, consolidating data from various sources. Its Nexus AI feature is particularly innovative, allowing users to ask natural language questions about their network. Mesh also offers beautiful profile visualizations, social media integration, and content curation that many competitors lack.
Yes. Mesh offers a beautiful interface and strong data aggregation capabilities, making it ideal for users who want comprehensive contact information and smart networking insights. Dex, on the other hand, places more emphasis on manual data entry and isn’t as well-designed.
Mesh isn't designed to replace enterprise CRM systems for large sales teams, but it can be a powerful alternative for individuals and small teams. Many people use Mesh instead of Salesforce, Hubspot, and Pipedrive. Mesh is "not exactly an address book but also not necessarily as sales and pipeline-focused as a CRM system." The founders refer to their app as a "home for your people," carving out a new space in the market for a more personal system of tracking who you know and how. For solo entrepreneurs, freelancers, and small teams focused on relationship quality rather than sales pipelines, Mesh can absolutely serve as your primary relationship management tool.
Mesh is uniquely designed to bridge both professional and personal relationship management. Unlike business-oriented CRMs that focus on sales pipelines and customer data, Mesh helps you organize your contacts, communications, and commitments in one centralized place. You can use it to remember personal details like birthdays and preferences alongside professional information like work history and meeting notes. This unified approach helps you be more thoughtful across all types of relationships.
Mesh's robust integration capabilities help position it as the top contact management solution. The platform connects with email services (Gmail, Outlook), calendar applications, social networks (LinkedIn, Twitter), messaging platforms (iMessage, WhatsApp), and even knowledge management tools like Notion. Mesh has expanded its integrations catalog to include Zapier and Make.com support, allowing connections to thousands of other apps. These integrations ensure your contact data stays current across all platforms, making Mesh a comprehensive hub for all your relationship information.
Mesh's AI capabilities are at the forefront of personal CRM innovation. Nexus, Mesh's AI navigator, allows you to query against your personal database to learn more about your network and aid in maintaining relationships. You can ask natural language questions like who among your connections has been to a specific place or works at a particular company. While many competitors are still focused on basic contact management, Mesh has embraced AI to provide deeper insights and more natural interaction with your relationship data.
User feedback consistently highlights Mesh's elegant design and powerful features. Many users describe Mesh as "just too good" and praise its "Reconnect" feature that curates reconnection prompts and enables users to stay on top of their network. Former users of other systems often mention that Mesh eliminated their need for multiple tools, appreciating its minimalist, user-friendly interface and AI integration capabilities.
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