Overall satisfaction with infrastructure across the globe is up 5 percentage points to 37 percent, according to the Global Infrastructure Index survey conducted by Ipsos and the Global Infrastructure Investor Association (GIIA). Surveying was conducted online between July 26 and Aug. 9 among adults aged 18 to 64 in the United States and Canada and adults aged 16 to 64 in all other countries. More than 19,000 people were surveyed.

High-tech has enjoyed a perception as an environmentally friendly industry due to its large presence in the virtual world. But while communications and content — whether made by mobile phone, iPad, computer, and increasingly sensors embedded in cars and appliances, to name a few — can have virtual addresses and travel virtual roads, the data is transmitted and stored in physical structures such as mobile towers, satellites and importantly, data centers.

Drew Campbell, i3 senior editor, spoke with Michael Likosky, a partner at Advantage Infrastructure Advisors, about the trend of technology companies entering the infrastructure investing market. The following is part 1 of their conversation. Part 2 will publish in a future issue of i3.

Five years from now, low-emission vehicles — predominantly electric vehicles (EVs) — will be transforming the streets of our cities … but only if these new vehicles have somewhere to charge. How can cities, infrastructure owners and transport authorities make joined-up decisions around EV charging infrastructure to reap the benefits of low-emission vehicles?

Investment diversification has become almost a platitude among investors, espoused with such casual frequency as to undermine the complexity required. Within infrastructure portfolios, true diversification is particularly complex due to, among other things, the sector’s bulky-sized assets, long-duration deal horizons, political variability, as well as high fixed transaction costs.