Inevitable

In today’s episode, we cover: Ken’s journey from making money on Wall Street to making meaning as a scientist The perceived “information deficit” problem in public policy How Ken distinguishes his role as a concerned citizen from his work as a scientist How getting past social identities is a major challenge to effecting change Bill Gates’ support and patronage of Ken’s work The various climate ch...

In today’s episode, we cover: KoBold’s team and its business Why cobalt is known as the “goblin metal” The collaboration of software engineering, data science and mineral exploration at KoBold KoBold’s “machine prospector” Kurt’s journey to taking action on climate change Why cobalt makes for a good ingredient in batteries Why cobalt is known as the “blood diamond of metals” KoBold’s technology an...

In today’s episode, we cover: What is Deep Isolation and how it’s addressing the issue of nuclear waste disposal The half-a-century history of nuclear waste Genesis of Deep Isolation and Elizabeth’s earlier work founding Berkeley Earth Directional drilling as a solution for long-term storage of nuclear waste Partnerships with communities Pollution studies performed by Berkeley Earth The opportunit...

In today’s episode, we cover: The NAACP, its history and mission Why climate is integral to promoting civil justice and equity Climate change’s disproportionate impact on communities of color Examples of how the NAACP is taking action from a climate perspective Jacqueline’s journey that led her to climate justice Her role at the NAACP in addressing climate issues that affect vulnerable groups The...

In today’s episode, we cover: What is Blueprint Power and how its unique business model works Who’s its customers and what is their need How her early-career at Google was a springboard into a career in energy The genesis and inspiration behind Blueprint Power The current state of the renewable energy sector The role of the energy grid and its stakeholders How Robyn initially validated market dema...

In today’s episode, we cover: Her journey from Geologist to Historian of Science The genesis of her climate change awakening What led to her seminal book on climate change, “Merchants of Doubt” How the science showing fossil fuels impact on climate change go way backHer work inspiring the movie, "An Inconvenient Truth" The foundational work of Prof. Ben Santer, proving climate change How the fossi...

In today’s episode, we cover: What is Elemental Excelerator Dawn’s journey to climate change Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative Applying the startup accelerator model to energy and clean tech Investing focus and criteria Holistic support for portfolio companies Geographic focus for its projects Sources of funding for Elemental Excelerator Purpose of pilots Coaching support Links to topics discussed in...

In today’s episode, we cover: What is Carbon Tracker and what’s it role in the financial markets? How fossil fuels and carbon emissions play into the valuation of stocks, etc. How Carbon Tracker influence investors and their strategies The investment risk associated with not factoring in climate change The meaning and examples of a “stranded asset” How the energy transition to cleaner technologies...

In today’s episode, we cover: Jupiter and its mission Rich’s journey from data analytics to climate change Parallels between the opportunity around cybersecurity and climate change The importance of physical climate risk How Jupiter initially narrowed its focus on flood risk How Jupiter develops a “peril model” to assess the risk of flooding and fires Profile of Jupiter’s customers How critical in...

In today’s episode, we cover: What is CGC and its mission as a nonprofit? Why “green bank” is somewhat of a misnomer The history of green banks in the U.S. both on the federal and state level Where the CGC adds value in the clean tech financing ecosystem Customers served by green banks The role green banks have played in jump starting new markets for clean tech Comparing green banks with for-profi...

In today’s episode, we cover: Role, function and mission of IIASA The context around SR15 UN Sustainable Development Goals Dr. Huppmann’s work on the message integrated assessment model for environmental scenario planning Significance of selecting a decade as the timeframe for action Unpacking the meaning of publicly stated thresholds Implications of Dr. Huppmann’s modeling on humanity How new res...

In today’s episode, we cover: Her journey to elected office and the challenges she faced in her campaign Her inspiration to run for state office What she discovered about the state of Albany politics How the campaign for state senator felt like a street fight Her upbringing in a politically-minded family How the existential problem of climate change underpins all other issues What other actions co...

In today’s episode, we cover: How Zahra landed at Buzzfeed covering climate The Trump Administration and how its policies have affected climate Her audience and readership The positioning of her news room and editors Journalism’s role Her journey from studying geology at Brown to the world of climate journalism What she learned at Inside Climate News How climate change has become increasingly topi...

In today’s episode, we cover: David’s influential career in tech His advocacy of various causes DHH’s view that, regardless of one’s background, one should become versed in climate change How his attention first peaked with the California drought How the fires near Malibu made the crisis feel personal and urgent “The Uninhabitable Earth” by David Wallace Wells helped inform him of the catastrophe...

In today’s episode, we cover: • Shayle’s journey from energy transition in the market intelligence space to climate change venture capital at Energy Impact Partners (EIP) • EIP, a VC with ~$1B in AUM whose LPs are a coalition of utilities • The sectors EIP invests in • Abe’s journey from Rockport Capital Partners, a cleantech private equity firm based, to cofounding Congruent Ventures in 2016 • A...

In today’s episode, we cover: ● The Rebound Effect and the ironic implications of improving energy efficiency ● Harry’s journey into Climate Change ● How Harry earned the moniker, “The Godfather of Rebound” ● Contention around rebound and its Climate implications ● Factoring in the welfare of those in developing countries and the plight of “energy poverty” ● The integral role of nuclear in any cle...

Today’s guest is Rob Hanson, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Monolith Materials, where he leads the development of next-generation technology for producing low cost, low emission hydrogen and carbon black, an important raw material used in the manufacture of rubber and plastic. Prior to Monolith, Rob served as the global director of product management for AREVA Solar , the solar division o...

Today's guest is Matt Eggers, Investor & Company Builder at Breakthrough Energy Ventures, a $1.1 billion, patient capital fund dedicated to building companies that will have a massive impact on greenhouse gas mitigation. He also serves on the Board of the Institute for Market Transformation. Matt is a seasoned cleantech leader, investor and advisor with 20 years of experience delivering results in...

Today’s guest is Phil Duffy, President & Executive Director at Woodwell Climate Research Center. Expertise Climate modeling, extreme weather risk, societal impacts of climate change, domestic climate policy, international climate change negotiations, climate change adaptation and mitigation strategies. Dr. Philip Duffy is a physicist who has devoted nearly 30 years to using science to address the...

Today’s guest is David Keith, Professor at Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and the Kennedy School, and Founder of Carbon Engineering. David has worked near the interface between climate science, energy technology, and public policy for twenty-five years. He took first prize in Canada's national physics prize exam, won MIT's prize for excellence in experimental physics, and was o...

Today's guest is BJ Fogg, Founder & Director, Behavior Design Lab at Stanford, with an appearance by William Shan, one of his students who is project managing the launch of his new Behavior Design for Climate Action online training program. BJ teaches good people how behavior works so they can create products & services that benefit everyday people around the world. He is a behavior scientist, wit...

This was an experiment using a new app Talkshow, which is a live discussion broadcast via twitter where listeners can text questions as we talk! Today's guest was Clay Dumas from Lowercarbon Capital, to talk about what they are up to with the fund and their newly opened roles! It is also always great to talk shop with Clay on everything climate change. Clay is a partner at Lowercarbon Capital wher...

Today's guest is Jigar Shah, President & Co-Founder at Generate Capital. Jigar was the founder and CEO of SunEdison (NASDAQ: SUNE, TERP), where he pioneered “no money down solar” and unlocked a multi-billion-dollar solar market, creating the largest solar services company worldwide. He is the author of Creating Climate Wealth: Unlocking the Impact Economy. After SunEdison, Jigar served as the foun...

Today's guest is Gary Cohen, President & Co-Founder of Health Care Without Harm. Gary has been a pioneer in the environmental health movement for thirty years. Cohen is President and Co-Founder of  Health Care Without Harm  and  Practice Greenhealth . He was also instrumental in bringing together the NGOs and hospital systems that formed the  Healthier Hospitals Initiative . All three were created...

Today's guest is Tim Freundlich, CEO of ImpactAssets. Tim is a long-time innovator in new financial instruments in the social enterprise sector, which he now applies as the head of ImpactAssets, the $1 billion boutique donor advised fund and investment note offerer for impact investments. While previously at Calvert Foundation for 12 years, he conceived of and launched the donor advised fund. He w...