Electric Ladies Podcast

As the D.C. Environmental Film Festival celebrates its 25th anniversary, Electric Ladies host Joan Michelson spoke with Founder Flo Stone about the festival's unusual business model, and environmental filmmaking circa 2017. The festival attracted 30,000 attendees and reached far and wide across Washington, DC into every neighborhood with its uniquely structured festival. Films are screened in venu...

Every time you turn on your tap, think about what you'd have to do if you couldn't use it - ever. That's what daily life is still like in Flint, Michigan as a result of lead in the city's water. The story may not be a top the national news these days, but the crisis continues and is not being fixed. Listen to Green Connections Radio host Joan Michelson's conversation with Nayyirah Sharrif, Flint r...

"(People in Flint) are living in…a war zone…it's not America. You're constantly on guard…and feel invisible" We were all outraged by the poisoning of small children, as well as adults, in Flint, Michigan as a result of lead in the city's water. It may have fallen off the national news, but the residents of Flint still cannot shower or brush their teeth in their tap water, much less cook with it an...

ARPA-E, the innovation arm of the Department of Energy plays a pivotal role in nurturing promising new energy-related technologies that will improve our lives and reduce our costs and carbon footprints, including through increased use of renewable energy sources. A fundamental challenge to increasing the use of renewable energy is the intermittency issue – the sun doesn't always shine and the wind...

"Our infrastructure was designed for the climate we had and not the climate we now have." Kathy Jacobs Extreme weather, hurricanes, droughts and floods all affect us personally every single day either in our ability to go to work or school or the prices we pay for food. Is this "a normal cycle" of climate change or manmade and accelerating? Over three hundred top scientists guided by a 60-member F...

"People have competing interests…(so) move beyond lazy labeling…a reporter's job is to provide context…undergirded by data and statistics….Be a little fearless." The Dakota Access Pipeline fight, hurricanes, droughts, earthquakes… the BP Oil Spill, the potential cuts to the EPA budget and rollback of the Clean Water and Clean Air Acts…Journalists rush to cover these stories as they break in the mo...

Happy International Women's Day!  We've taken the proverbial three steps forward and two steps back recently, when it comes to women's advancement. Women have made great strides in the private sector, including being CEO of four top Fortune 500 STEM-related companies: Ginny Rometty at IBM, Mary Barra at General Motors, Marillyn Hewson at Lockheed Martin, and Ursula Burns at Xerox. Yet, most women...

Imagine an historic, award-winning theatre on the wharf, surrounded by water, in the central business district of one of the most popular and acclaimed cities in the world….Now, think about trying to reduce its environmental impact and all the stakeholders involved. That's what Paul O'Byrne did, working with Academy Award-winning actress Cate Blanchett and her husband Andrew Upton, who together ra...

"Find another way." We all know the power of movies to move us. EMMY-winning documentary filmmaker – and co-executive producer of the masterful documentary "Dispatches From the Gulf" about the scientific impact of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill – Marilyn Weiner talks with Green Connections Radio host Joan Michelson about the ups and downs of using filmmaking to spread the environmental message, and...

Think about your favorite movies this Oscar season… Now think about what it took to produce it: energy for lighting, water and food for the crew, paper for the scripts, wood and other materials for the sets, cars and vans to transport people, maybe cars and buildings that get blown up…. All of that produces a lot of waste and uses a lot of energy and water, and puts CO2 into the air. Listen to hos...

"Energy storage enables us to have energy and power when and where we need it." The linchpin in the new energy revolution is storage – to "enable us to have energy and power when and where we need it," as Dr. McGrath put it.  It's a time of rapid innovation in energy and storage, though, and the systems that rely on them, such as utilities and electric vehicles, as well as the electric grid. Liste...

One thing the 2016 election showed us is how much we are not communicating, how much we are not hearing each other. Communication is a two-way street, but how do we know what the other person is hearing or cares about? Listen to Green Connections Radio host Joan Michelson's interview with business coach Steve Sapato for how to find out more about the audience or your conversation partner before yo...

"In 2015, about 40% of total U.S. energy consumption was consumed in residential and commercial building" According to the U.S. Green Building Council, "In the United States alone, buildings account for almost 40 percent of national CO2 emissions and out-consume both the industrial and transportation sectors, but LEED-certified buildings have 34 percent lower CO2 emissions, consume 25 percent less...

The energy revolution continues, and is gaining speed as it converges with "Big Data" and more – despite geopolitical volatility. How do we make sense of it? How do we choose today's investments that will affect tomorrow? By looking at the trend lines and intersections we might miss. The best person to give us those trends and insights is today's guest on Green Connections Radio: Peter Kelly-Detwi...

Women around the globe are most affected by climate change, according to Osprey Orielle Lake, the Founder of the Women's Environmental and Climate Action Network International (WECAN), for a number of reasons. Hear why and about the novel trainings that WECAN is providing to women across the globe from joining the Women's March in D.C. to conducting detailed trainings in Third World countries most...

Putting your career into higher gear takes deliberate steps, and times of change present opportunities - like what we face now in the energy and sustainability space, especially with the new U.S. leadership. Grab your notebook or however you take notes for this one! Rita Trehan is a former Human Resources leader at two huge global companies for many years – Honeywell and electric power giant AES –...

As we embark on an uncertain energy and climate future with a new U.S. president who denies climate change and embraces fossil fuels, it's important to keep focused on the risks – and the opportunities – of the energy portfolio and climate change. Whether you support the fossil fuel industry or think it should be wiped from the earth, you'll learn something new – or think about things anew – by li...

How do you find the job that makes you feel your best, be engaged in your work?  Those of us in the green economy want to make a difference and bring our passion for it to work. But short of going to work for a non-profit or volunteering, how do we do it? Listen here to HR Guru Alaina Love for tips on how to find where you best "fit" based on your values, interests and passions, so you can be your...

How do you create social value and make money at the same time? Whether you're a big company or a small one, or a non-profit, listen to Green Connections Radio host Joan Michelson's probing conversation with Cheryl Kiser, head of the Lewis Center for Social Innovation at Babson College and co-author of the new book, "Creating Social Value: A Guide for Leaders and Change Makers." You'll discover: t...

Did you know that training for the utility sector can also equip you to work in biotech? Do you currently work in the energy field – or want to? Ann Randazzo, Executive Director of the Center for Energy Workforce Development, explains to Green Connections Radio host Joan Michelson these surprising tips in this two-part series (listen to Part I on GreenConnectionsRadio.com or iTunes, iHeartRadio):...

"Sometimes sideways or backwards turns into a slingshot," Whitney Johnson on Green Connections Radio Do you want to make a bigger impact? To be yourself at work? Listen to this enlightening conversation between Green Connections Radio host Joan Michelson and Whitney Johnson, award-winning executive from Wall Street to Twitter and author of "Disrupt Yourself." Grab a pen and paper or your laptop to...

"Sustainable travelers spend more and stay longer," Geoff Bolan on Green Connections Radio. If you're a travel and tourism leader – or a traveler who has sustainable values – listen to this enlightening conversation between Green Connections Radio host Joan Michelson and Geoff Bolan, CEO of Sustainable Travel International. You'll discover: Who sustainable travelers are and what they look for. How...

Did you know that training for the utility sector can also equip you to work in biotech? Do you currently work in the energy field – or want to? Ann Randazzo, Executive Director of the Center for Energy Workforce Development, explains to Green Connections Radio host Joan Michelson these surprising tips in this two-part series: How you can earn $100,000+ salary and get $200,000 worth in training Wh...

Energy is the lifeblood of the economy. Where it we get it from matters, though. With several oil and gas folks set to take top posts in the new administration, it's important to talk with one of the top people who was a liaison between BP and the clean up, from a scientific side: Rita Colwell, Ph. D, with too many top scientific roles to list. One of the first calls after the catastrophic BP Oil...

This will surprise you. As a former Deputy Secretary of Defense, and the former Senior Vice President and General Counsel and Military Advisor at CNA, a top national security think tank, Sherri Goodman knows national security.  She pioneered Environmental Security, leading Defense's analyses of how a changing climate affects national security – and what the Defense establishment needs to do to add...