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Ecosystems: Technology explained... in under 100 words

Ecosystems

 

In the wake of a global shift in environmental awareness, you might believe the term 'ecosystems' refers only to the natural world - you'd be wrong. In classrooms all around the world, children are taught about the benefits that a healthy ecosystem can bring and this is the same in today's business environment. Evermore being recognised as a buzzword when discussing the new technologies, an 'ecosystem' is a concept of business and technology, and is becoming increasingly important. The thoughts of living organisms coming together and competing for scarce resources can be quite confidently applied to business, with the evolution of ever denser and richer networks of collaboration being formed.

Ecosystems are fundamental in the pursuit of finding solutions to what we know as 'wicked' problems, these are issues that humanity as a species needs to solve; deforestation, plastics in the ocean and global warming. These are challenges where no single competitor or business can solve them alone and thus requires coalescence of many individual actors.

As part of our 'Explained in under 100 words' series, we're taking a look at Ecosystems and explain how they help to solve some of the world's largest challenges.

With the rise in global warming, a reduction in the use of fossil fuels is paramount. One solution is the conversion to electric cars.

A key challenge with this conversion is the limited charging stations that are currently available. For a meaningful level of conversion, many more charging stations will need to be built. It is through the creation of ecosystems that companies who produce electric cars, such as Tesla, can work together with companies who build and maintain charging-points and look to provide a solution. This ecosystem not only benefits each of the companies but the whole of humanity.

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