Cleaning Up: Leadership in an Age of Climate Change

How can climate activists be more successful in 2025? And where have they gone wrong?  Kumi Naidoo has a storied career as an activist. At just 15 years old, he started out as an anti-apartheid campaigner and organiser in South Africa, before fleeing the country and attending Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar, where he received a PhD for his research into the resistance movement in South Afric...

The global south needs to build out vast amounts of clean energy, and requires hundreds of billions of dollars annually to do. And yet, only a fraction of the investment going into clean energy and the net-zero transition is flowing into those growth markets. So why are so few investing? Lucy Heintz is partner and head of energy infrastructure at Actis, whose most recent Energy Fund represents ove...

Just a few short years ago, sustainable finance and sustainable investing were all the rage. The Glasgow Financial Alliance For Net Zero (GFANZ) boasted financial players controlling $140 trillion.  Things have not been quite as smooth since: There's been extensive pushback, starting from the red states in the US, but spreading from there against ESG. And of course, sustainable finance and sustain...

Aviation accounts for around 2-3% of global emissions, and is showing no sign of decreasing. There has been a lot of focus on replacement fuels, but no real paradigm shift in the industry. Anders Forslund has a plan to change that.  Anders is the CEO of Heart Aerospace, the Swedish airplane developers who've recently established an R&D facility in California to develop their 30 seater hybrid-elect...

Will AI be a disaster for the climate, or a saviour in disguise? How is AI reshaping power needs around the world? And does a lack of clean electricity spell the end of the AI dream, or a new round of fossil-fuel reliant data centres?  All this, and more in the audio adaptation of Michel's article for BloombergNEF: Generative AI: The Power and the Glory.  Read the full piece at: https://about.bnef...

How can $10 billion be spent most effectively to address the climate and nature crises? What role can philanthropy play in driving systemic change? And how can new technologies like AI be leveraged to accelerate climate solutions?  This week on Cleaning Up, host Bryony Worthington sits down with Dr. Andrew Steer, President and CEO of the Bezos Earth Fund, to explore these critical questions. Estab...

Happy New Year and welcome to Season 14 of Cleaning Up. From the future of nuclear to growing tensions between China and the USA, we're off with a bang with a conversation between hosts Michael Liebreich and Bryony Worthington. They reflect on the key trends of 2024, and looking ahead to what might be on the cards in 2025, from China's rapid electrification to political upheaval in the US. Bryony...

Happy New Year from all of us here at Cleaning Up. This week we’re bringing you one from our archive of almost 200 episodes. It’s a conversation Bryony Worthington had with Naomi Oreskes in October 2023,  her very first episode as a co-host for Cleaning Up.   Naomi Oreskes is the Henry Charles Lea Professor of the History of Science and Affiliated Professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Harva...

Hello, I’m Michael Liebreich, and this is Cleaning Up. I hope you are having a good break over the holiday season, and getting to spend some quality time with your family. I’m in Switzerland, where it has just snowed about a meter in 24 hours. In case you’re missing your regular dose of climate content, we’re starting something new, which we’re calling Cleaning Up Redux. During the break between s...

Are we losing the argument that climate change requires action and investment? Can we balance the need for affordable energy with the costs of decarbonizing hard-to-abate sectors like steel, cement and aviation? And how can we counter the spread of misinformation and populist narratives that undermine support for clean energy?  This week on Cleaning Up, Michael Liebreich welcomes back Lord Adair T...

Climate philanthropies are playing an increasingly important role in funding climate action. In 2023, an estimated $9-16 billion was spent by philanthropies on programs to mitigate climate change. But how do they choose how to spend it? And what role should philanthropy play in catalysing innovation?  Bryony Worthington sits down with Greg de Temmerman, Deputy CEO of the Quadrature Climate Foundat...

What was achieved at COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan? Where will the promised $300 billion come from, and how will it be spent? And what reforms are needed to make the COP process more effective and impactful?  This week, host Michael Liebreich sits down with James Cameron, an international climate lawyer who has been involved with the COP process since before COPs were COPs. James shares his insights i...

As we race towards a future powered by AI and data centres, how will the insatiable demand for energy impact the environment? With the richest companies ploughing billions into energy generation, might there be some unexpected upsides for the climate transition? And can exponential technologies address the climate crisis on a finite planet?  This week on Cleaning Up, host Michael Liebreich sits do...

How can behavioural science and psychology be leveraged to drive meaningful change around climate action? What unintended consequences might arise from heavy-handed government mandates versus more subtle interventions? And in the face of the climate crisis, is it ethical to actively promote the use of fossil fuels?  This week on Cleaning Up, Michael welcomes Ogilvy UK Vice-chair Rory Sutherland to...

Is China's lead in clean technologies insurmountable? How will the Trump presidency shape relations with China? And when will China's emissions peak?  Fatih Birol, head of the International Energy Agency, has said that 'almost every energy story is essentially a China story. But it's a complicated story that has been powered by vast supplies of coal. China's economy has grown rapidly, with per cap...

How will the Trump administration's policies impact the clean energy transition in the United States? What will be Elon Musk's role in shaping climate policy? And what are the geopolitical implications of the US withdrawing from the Paris Agreement?  In this special episode of Cleaning Up, hosts Michael Liebreich and Bryony Worthington reflect on the implications of the recent US election results...

Could we save billions by simply reducing energy waste? How can we power the vast, energy-hungry growth of AI without sacrificing climate goals? And is Europe doomed to high energy costs and deindustrialisation?  This week on Cleaning Up, Michael Liebreich sits down with Jonathan Maxwell, CEO and founder of Sustainable Development Capital LLP (SDCL), for the third time on Cleaning Up. Jonathan sha...

How difficult is it to power a boat just with electricity? Is an electric outboard as reliable as a fossil-fuel one when taken out to sea? And just how much better is an electric engine for reducing pollution and noise?  Around the world there are tens of millions of small boats, from high-performance luxury craft to workhorse fishing vessels, nearly all of which run on fossil-fuel powered engines...

Is the shift to electric vehicles really slowing down? Are people losing interest in EVs, or is there more to the story? How will changes in the global automotive industry impact the net-zero transition? And If no one wants EVs, why do we need tariffs?   This week on Cleaning Up, host Michael Liebreich sits down with Colin McKerracher, Head of Clean Transport at BloombergNEF, to unpack the latest...

China has taken a commanding lead in manufacturing solar panels, wind turbines, electric vehicles and batteries, and is central to the green energy transition. Now, the US is hoping to catch up, and has spent almost $500 billion from the Inflation Reduction Act to bolster the energy transition and domestic manufacturing. Is it enough to create-long lasting change?  This week on Cleaning Up, host B...

Ocean's absorb one third of the CO2 we are recklessly pumping into the atmosphere, as well as 90% of the heat. What would happen if that were to stop? The oceans define every aspect of our planet's physical systems, its ecosystems, human history and human culture. They also define the planet's future. Oceans represent an almost unexplored frontier in the fight against climate change, whether as a...

Is the key to clean energy the heat beneath our feet? Could advances in the fossil-fuel extraction industry hold the key to providing 24/7 clean power? And can a Texan CEO and former oil exec bring geothermal to the masses?  This week on Cleaning Up, Bryony Worthington sits down with Cindy Taff, a 35-year veteran of Shell, where she was Vice President of Unconventional Drilling, leading a team of...

What will it take for electric vehicles to truly dominate the transportation landscape? Can traditional automakers adapt quickly enough to the EV revolution, or will new players seize the opportunity? And how close are we to the holy grail of fully autonomous driving?  This week on Cleaning Up, Michael Liebreich sits down with Dr. Andy Palmer, a pioneer in the electric vehicle industry. With over...

As climate impacts mount, pressure is building on policymakers to find ways to alleviate the crisis. One controversial option being explored is geoengineering - direct human interventions to cool the planet. But can we safely and effectively implement these large-scale climate remedies?  Bryony Worthington sits down with Kelly Wanser, Executive Director of the nonprofit SilverLining, which conduct...

Germany is one of the most bullish countries in the world on clean/green hydrogen. The home of the Energiewende is not just one of the most committed countries in the world to reaching net zero, it is of course a highly industrialised nation with a very energy-intensive economy. As if that were not enough, it had one third of its energy supply yanked out from under it as a result of Russia’s illeg...