After 160 episodes and five years of interviews, debates and friendly bipartisan banter, Political Climate will be taking a break starting in 2023. This will be the final episode (for now).

This podcast was launched to create a forum for respectful, informative dialogue across the political divide on the policy and politics of climate and energy. Host Julia Pyper, Republican co-host Shane Skelton and Democratic co-host Brandon Hurlbut have never debated the science of climate change, but have had in-depth discussions on how to craft climate policy that’s not only effective but politically feasible. The show has spanned the most pivotal five years for climate action, culminating in the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the largest national investment in clean energy in history. 

In this final episode, the hosts dig into the archives to hear from some of the show’s most notable guests including Political Climate supporter Arnold Schwarzenegger, activist Greta Thunberg, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres and many more. They also reflect on the rocky journey that led to this point, changes in public opinion on climate change, and the widening Overton window for climate action. 

Thank you to everyone for listening and for your support over the years. 

***

Political Climate is brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org.

Support for Political Climate also comes from Climate Positive, a podcast from Hannon Armstrong, the first U.S. public company solely dedicated to investing in climate solutions. The Climate Positive podcast features candid conversations with the leaders, innovators and changemakers driving our climate-positive future. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

The Inflation Reduction Act is the largest investment in clean energy ever made by the federal government. Among the bill’s more than 700 pages is a lesser-known provision that could play a pivotal role in transforming existing dirty energy infrastructure to serve the clean energy economy of the future. 

The new Energy Infrastructure Reinvestment Program — also known as the Section 1706 program — gives the Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office $5 billion, with the authority to provide up to $250 billion in low-interest loans. These loans could radically change the energy landscape. The program could fund efforts to repurpose old coal and gas plant sites to deploy clean energy projects, leveraging existing infrastructure to save on costs while delivering economic benefits to communities. 

Political Climate hosts Julia Pyper, Shane Skelton and Brandon Hurlbut are joined by two guests to discuss this new program: Alexander Bond, deputy general counsel for climate and clean energy at the Edison Electric Institute, and Uday Varadarajan, a principal at the clean-energy nonprofit RMI. They discuss the innovative structure of the Section 1706 program, challenges the Loan Programs Office will face as it rolls out the funding, and the opportunities for the program to help clean up the U.S. electric grid. 

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Canary Media: How will DOE loan out $250B to make dirty energy systems clean?
• Canary Media: What challenges will confront DOE loan program for energy retrofits?
• RMI: The Most Important Clean Energy Policy You’ve Never Heard About
• DOE: Energy Infrastructure Reinvestment

***

Political Climate is brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org.

Support for Political Climate also comes from Climate Positive, a podcast from Hannon Armstrong, the first U.S. public company solely dedicated to investing in climate solutions. The Climate Positive podcast features candid conversations with the leaders, innovators and changemakers driving our climate-positive future. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. 

The 2022 midterm elections are officially behind us. Democrats overcame historical trends to keep control of the Senate, while Republicans won a majority in the House by a surprisingly narrow margin.

Ultimately, there was no red wave. There wasn’t really a “green wave” either. Democrats ushered through an ambitious legislative agenda, with President Biden signing historic bills to tackle climate change, build resilient infrastructure, and accelerate the deployment of American-made clean energy. Yet these issues got relatively little play this election cycle – for or against.

Have we entered a new era for climate politics? Could there even be room for collaboration? Or will a divided government post-election give new life to old debates? 

Political Climate hosts Julia Pyper, Shane Skelton and Brandon Hurlbut dig into the midterm results, discuss what they got right — and wrong — in their election predictions, and break down what it all means for the future of climate policy in America. 

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Wesleyan Media Project: Advertising Issue Spotlight
• The Atlantic: Wait, Why Wasn’t There a Climate Backlash?
• Canary Media: How Democratic state wins in the midterms could rev up climate progress
• WaPo: How different groups voted according to exit polls and AP VoteCast

***

Political Climate is brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org.

Support for Political Climate also comes from Climate Positive, a podcast from Hannon Armstrong, the first U.S. public company solely dedicated to investing in climate solutions. The Climate Positive podcast features candid conversations with the leaders, innovators and changemakers driving our climate-positive future. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. 

Many Americans are pessimistic about the U.S. election system. From skepticism around mail-in ballots and voting machines to coping with long lines and shuttered polling places, voter confidence has slumped. When it comes to climate, research shows 66% to 80% of people support major mitigation policies. But are election related barriers preventing these voter preferences from being captured at the ballot box?

With the midterm elections less than a week away, we’re examining the fundamentals of the democratic process: the right to vote and public trust in elections. Plus, how the redistricting process influences both electoral outcomes and policymaking – including on climate and energy issues.

Political Climate hosts Julia Pyper, Shane Skelton and Brandon Hurlbut are joined by USC Political Science and Public Policy Professor Christian Grose to discuss his research on how to improve voter access and voting rights and reduce polarization. Grose, who serves as academic director of the USC Schwarzenegger Institute, also previews new polling on Proposition 30, an environmental related ballot measure in California. Finally, he explains why you should care about redistricting if you care about climate change.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Enhancing Democracy: Does Funding Elections and Opening Polling Places Cause Higher Voter Turnout?
• USC Schwarzenegger Institute Initiates Democracy Grants for Voting Access and Election Administration
• Independent Redistricting Commissions Increase Voter Perceptions of Fairness

***

Political Climate is brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org.

Support for Political Climate also comes from Climate Positive, a podcast from Hannon Armstrong, the first U.S. public company solely dedicated to investing in climate solutions. The Climate Positive podcast features candid conversations with the leaders, innovators and changemakers driving our climate-positive future. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. 

Some of the most influential people in energy policy are almost completely unknown to the public.

The transition to wind, solar, and other efficient technologies has the potential to make electricity more reliable and affordable for millions of Americans. But in many cases, this shift to clean energy must first be approved by gatekeepers you’ve never heard of.

In this Political Climate episode, host Julia Pyper and producer Maria Virginia Olano are joined by Canary Media Senior Reporter Julian Spector to talk about public utility commissioners — who they are, why they are so important, and how you can engage with them to help shape your own energy future.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Canary Media: What are public utility commissions? A beginner’s guide
• Vox: The overlooked elections this year with big climate stakes
• Canary Media: Who should pay to help coal communities in the energy transition?
• E&E News: 5 state-level races that could alter the energy transition
• Canary Media: Hawaii surges toward clean energy

***

Political Climate is brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org.

Support for Political Climate also comes from Climate Positive, a podcast from Hannon Armstrong, the first U.S. public company solely dedicated to investing in climate solutions. The Climate Positive podcast features candid conversations with the leaders, innovators and changemakers driving our climate-positive future. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. 

The midterm elections are less than a month away. Inflation, the economy, abortion access and election integrity are among voters’ top priorities this cycle, but how will they influence decisions on the ballot and, ultimately, the balance of power? And how will that outcome shape the future of climate and energy policy in the U.S.?

Political Climate hosts Julia Pyper, Shane Skelton and Brandon Hurlbut are back on the podcast to discuss what’s at stake in the 2022 midterms, the latest polling results and wild cards that could drive voter turnout. Will the Inflation Reduction Act give Dems a lift?

Plus, they discuss the failure of Senator Joe Manchin’s bill to reform permitting for energy infrastructure, and what that failure means for the buildout of both clean energy and fossil fuel pipelines. And the hosts talk about another big piece of climate news that received little coverage: the Senate’s ratification of the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol in a rare bipartisan vote.  

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Vox: The unlikely allies who sank Joe Manchin’s energy deal
• Political Climate: 'Need for Speed': Why Solving Climate Change Is About More Than CO2
• U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee: Menendez Makes Final Push for Senate Approval of Kigali Amendment to Montreal Protocol
• Real Clear Politics: Latest polls

***

Political Climate is brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org.

Support for Political Climate also comes from Climate Positive, a podcast from Hannon Armstrong, the first U.S. public company solely dedicated to investing in climate solutions. The Climate Positive podcast features candid conversations with the leaders, innovators and changemakers driving our climate-positive future. Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.

Clean energy is known to help grow economies and reduce carbon emissions. Can it also help strengthen democracies? 

That may seem like a tall order for a set of technologies. But when you consider how petro-dictatorships have roiled global markets in the past year – triggering price spikes, resource shortages, and even war – making the U.S. an arsenal of clean energy could help pave the way to greater stability. 

Political Climate launched the “Arsenal of Clean Energy” podcast series to tackle tough questions on how to balance climate action with immediate energy demands, while maintaining affordable prices for consumers, promoting economic growth and enhancing national security. In this fourth and final episode of the series, host Julia Pyper sits down with Josh Freed, the head of Third Way's Climate and Energy Program, to connect the dots on these topics and how to think about the path forward. 

To round out the episode, we hear from U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm on why now is a critical time for America to lead. 

The “Arsenal of Clean Energy” is made possible by Third Way, a center-left think tank championing modern solutions to the most challenging problems in US policy. Learn more at thirdway.org

Recommended content:

• Third Way: When America Leads: Competing for the Future of Clean Energy
• Third Way: The Arsenal of Clean Energy (Podcast Series)

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Political Climate is supported by the USC Schwarzenegger Institute and published in partnership with Canary media. Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

The Inflation Reduction Act has not only been signed into law, President Biden and Democratic leaders hosted a nearly full-day celebratory event at the White House last week to underscore passage of the historic bill. But the hard work of implementing the law and rolling out its $370 billion in climate and clean energy investments is only just beginning. 

In this Political Climate Newsflash episode, host Julia Pyper and producer Maria Virginia Olano bring you an inside look at what’s next for companies and organizations on the front lines of making the promise of the IRA a reality. Cleantech industry leaders from BlocPower, Sunrun, Q-Cells, Breakthrough Energy and beyond gathered at a roundtable ahead of the White House event to discuss the road ahead. This episode features voices from that conversation. 

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Canary Media: Climate law may revolutionize US cleantech manufacturing. Here’s how
• Political Climate: A new era for US energy innovation
• Utility Dive: Biden administration awards $900M to 35 states for EV charging network as automakers ramp up battery plans
• New York Times: air-pollution-health.html">A huge side benefit of the new climate bill

***

Political Climate is brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org.

California experienced a record-setting heat wave in early September that brought the state’s electricity grid very close to failure and forced tough choices on customers trying to stay cool while complying with alerts to save energy. 

Against that backdrop, the state legislature moved to pass a suite of climate and energy bills, a record $54 billion in new climate spending, and a plan to extend the life of the state’s last nuclear power plant — all just days after the state finalized one of the most ambitious rules to stop the sale of new gas-powered cars. 

What does this big policy push say about the state of California’s energy mix? And how is the world’s 5th largest economy planning to cope with the intensifying impacts of climate change? 

Political Climate hosts Julia Pyper and Shane Skelton are joined by Sammy Roth, staff writer at the LA Times and author of the weekly Boiling Point newsletter, to discuss how the clean energy transition is playing out in California and the lessons it can teach the rest of the country. 

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• LA Times: Repowering the West
• LA Times: Newsom enjoys his most successful legislative session yet with wins on climate, Diablo Canyon
• Canary Media: California faces big power challenges — even if Diablo Canyon stays open
• LA Times: Gov. Newsom’s plan to prevent power outages has a big downside: fossil fuels
• Grist: Drilling setbacks, net-zero, and a nuclear lifeline. Here’s what just happened in California.

***

Political Climate is brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org.

Many of our homes use fossil fuels to keep us warm, heat our water, and cook our food. But as the U.S. moves to decarbonize, there’s a push for homeowners to switch to electric appliances and systems. Now, with the Inflation Reduction Act signed into law, there’s an enormous amount of new funding available to accelerate that transition. 

In this Political Climate Newsflash episode, host Julia Pyper and producer Maria Virginia Olano are joined by Ari Matusiak, CEO of Rewiring America, a non-profit working to electrify everything in our homes, businesses and communities. They break down the rebates, tax credits, and other programs in the climate law that will help American households go electric – and how much money consumers can save in the process.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Rewiring America: How much money will you get with the Inflation Reduction Act?
• Canary Media: Climate bill could spur ​‘market transformation’ in home electrification
• Rewiring America: The Electric Explainer: Key programs in the Inflation Reduction Act and what they mean for Americans
• Rewiring America: An overview of the climate and electrification provisions for disadvantaged communities in the Inflation Reduction Act

***

Political Climate is brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org.

The Inflation Reduction Act has been aptly labeled a “climate bill,” but in many ways it’s an “American competitiveness bill.”

Building and deploying clean energy technology within the U.S. is a major focus of the $450 billion spending package, with the potential for exporting those solutions around the globe. This new investment comes amid concerns that the US has been falling behind other nations (most notably China) in global energy innovation race.

On this episode of Political Climate, we discuss how the Inflation Reduction Act — signed into law this week by President Biden — is poised to change the U.S. innovation landscape. With new support for laboratory research and real world project demonstrations, building out supply chains and more, we may be entering a new era for American competitiveness.

Varun Sivaram, senior advisor to U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry and his managing director for clean energy, innovation, and competitiveness joins the podcast, as well as Nick Montoni, senior innovation policy advisor for the Climate and Energy Program at Third Way.

"Arsenal of Clean Energy" is made possible by Third Way, a center-left think tank championing modern solutions to the most challenging problems in US policy, including the economy, national security and climate change. Learn more at thirdway.org 

Recommended reading:

• Energizing America: A Roadmap to Launch a National Energy
• Third Way: Making DOE’s New Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations a Success
• Third Way: How to Unleash the LPO’s True Potential

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Whiplash, anyone? After many months of intense negotiations and more than one derailment, the U.S. Senate recently passed the largest legislative investment in climate action in U.S. history.

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 contains an enormous amount of spending for climate protection and clean energy — $369 billion over 10 years — and is expected to put the country on a path to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2030. 

But it’s not all good news for everyone. In order to get the support of Democratic Senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, the final bill made significant cuts to the Democrats’ initial budget reconciliation plan, plus some other compromises. 

Political Climate hosts Julia Pyper, Shane Skelton and Brandon Hurlbut discuss how climate and clean energy provisions survived the reconciliation bill roller coaster and the impact of key elements of the Inflation Reduction Act.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Canary Media: Inflation Reduction Act: Follow Canary’s coverage
• Vox: The Inflation Reduction Act, explained
• Scientific American: Nearly $53 Billion in Federal Funding Could Revive the U.S. Computer Chip Industry
• Canary Media: Climate bill could spur ​‘market transformation’ in home electrification
• Canary Media: What could the climate bill do for environmental justice?

***

Political Climate is brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org.

Have we entered a new era for nuclear power? Energy security needs, financial pressures, and climate concerns are driving renewed interest in nuclear power plants — particularly small modular reactors that are easier and cheaper to build. Amid growing global demand, the U.S. has an opportunity to lead in an emerging nuclear technology race. 

But the successful deployment of advanced nuclear projects hinges on policy support to mobilize investment and streamline construction. 

In the second episode of Political Climate’s Arsenal of Clean Energy series, host Julia Pyper is joined by Alan Ahn, senior resident fellow for Third Way's Climate and Energy Program and Carol Berrigan, executive director of federal programs and supplier relations at the Nuclear Energy Institute, to discuss how inventing and deploying U.S. advanced nuclear technology can help securely decarbonize energy systems and revitalize former coal communities at home and abroad. 

"Arsenal of Clean Energy” is made possible by Third Way, a center-left think tank championing modern solutions to the most challenging problems in US policy, including the economy, national security and climate change. Learn more at thirdway.org 

Recommended reading: 

• State Department: United States Takes Next Step in Supporting Innovative Clean Nuclear Technology in Europe
• energy-nuclear-power-natural-gas.html">NYT: Romania Sees an Opening to Become an Energy Power in Europe
• Third Way: Revitalizing America’s Nuclear Energy Supply Chain
• power-climate-change-bill-gates-carbon-orig-me.cnn/video/playlists/business-innovate/">CNN: This nuclear reactor could be a game changer for the climate crisis

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Amazon Music or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

How can you go solar when you can’t put panels on your roof? Don't worry, there is a way! Through shared solar arrays — a model known as community solar. 

In this Political Climate Newsflash episode, host Julia Pyper and producer Maria Virginia Olano are joined by Canary Media Staff Writer Alison Takemura to discuss the growing popularity of community solar. Currently there are 4.9 gigawatts of community solar installed in the United States, and big plans to grow that number exponentially over the next decade. 

Not only does community solar put more clean energy on the grid and help states and municipalities reach their climate and clean energy goals, but it can also save people money on their electric bills. But the success of community solar projects often hinges on putting the right policies in place. 

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Canary Media: What is community solar? And how can you sign up?
• Canary Media: Will California finally fix its community solar programs?
• U.S. Department of Energy: DOE Sets 2025 Community Solar Target to Power 5 Million Homes
• Institute for Local Self-Reliance: National Community Solar Programs Tracker
• Canary Media: How cities and counties can grow their clean energy profiles

Political Climate is brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org.

The U.S. Supreme Court wrapped up its term last month with a series of high-profile and controversial decisions — including on the case West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency. In that opinion, a 6-3 majority determined the EPA does not have the authority to regulate carbon emissions from power plants based on the “generation shifting” approach used in the Obama administration's Clean Power Plan.

Conservative leaders applauded the decision for reigning in regulatory overreach, while liberals and environmentalists expressed shock and dismay at restrictions placed on rules to reduce emissions. What the Supreme Court case ultimately means for climate action is complex. There are regulations the EPA can still pursue. At the same time, a legal shadow now hangs over government agencies amid ongoing gridlock in Congress. 

To discuss the path forward, Political Climate hosts Julia Pyper and Shane Skelton are joined by Jay Duffy, an attorney with the Clean Air Task Force, who represented a diverse group of environmental and public health organizations in the West Virginia v. EPA case.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate. While you're here, please leave a review! Thank you.

Recommended reading:

• Clean Air Task Force: Supreme Court takes key tool out of EPA’s toolbox, but multiple options remain for agency to regulate climate pollution
• Canary Media: Supreme Court hamstrings federal efforts to clean up US power sector
• Canary Media: Most voters support EPA limiting CO2 pollution from power plants 
• Politico: 'We don’t have to pretend anymore': Greens ready to bail on D.C. 

Political Climate is brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org

As nations scramble to wean off of Russian energy, the U.S. has committed to supporting its European allies in their quest for energy security. At the same time, American consumers are confronting the highest rate of inflation in 40 years, paying more at the pump and for their utility bills than ever before.

These trends have led to an increase in U.S. oil and gas production — and calls for even greater market expansion. But this shift could have serious implications for the clean energy transition. On this episode of Political Climate, we wrestle with how to walk the fine line between meeting today’s immediate energy demands, maintaining lower prices for American consumers and achieving our climate goals.

This is the first episode in a monthly podcast series we’re calling “The Arsenal of Clean Energy: Strengthening the Bonds of Clean Energy, Innovation, and Sovereignty," featuring leading economists and energy policy experts Ellen Hughes-Cromwick of Third Way, Dana Peterson of The Conference Board, and Christy Goldfuss of the Center for American Progress.

“Arsenal of Clean Energy” is made possible by Third Way, a center-left think tank championing modern solutions to the most challenging problems in US policy, including the economy, national security and climate change. Learn more at thirdway.org

Recommended reading:

• Third Way: Making the US the World’s Arsenal of Clean Energy
• Politico: To Beat Putin, Europe Needs America’s Clean Energy
• Fact Sheet: President Biden Takes Bold Executive Action to Spur Domestic Clean Energy Manufacturing
• price-index-may-2022.html%20">CNBC: Inflation rose 8.6% in May, highest since 1981

Despite remarkable breakthroughs in clean energy deployment, there has been little progress made on the thorny issue of what to do with solar panels, wind turbines, batteries and other equipment when they reach the end of their useful life. 

Without proper recycling or reuse, these materials could do real harm to ecosystems and communities. Failure to effectively recycle could also threaten the long-term viability of a clean energy economy that is already facing strains in the supply of some raw materials, such as lithium and cobalt. 

In this Newsflash episode, host Julia Pyper and producer Maria Virginia Olano are joined by guest Emily Burlinghaus, who has been researching clean energy recycling as a fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Global Energy Center and the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies in Potsdam, Germany. As part of Canary Media's dedicated week of coverage on how to make clean energy cleaner, the three discuss opportunities and roadblocks in the emerging field of recycling renewable energy assets.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Canary Media: Recycling Renewables: A special series
• Canary Media: Why we need to recycle clean energy technologies — and how to do it
• Atlantic Council: As the US struggles to “green” supply chains, new EU battery regulation offers lessons
• U.S. Department of Energy: DOE Releases Action Plan For Photovoltaic Systems End-Of-Life Management
• The Carbon Copy: The battery recycling boom

Political Climate is brought to you by FischTank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy for bringing your work not only to wider audiences, but to the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fischtankpr.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org

The hydrogen debate has evolved over the past two decades, shifting from how hydrogen could be used in the auto industry toward its potential use in hard-to-decarbonize sectors such as trucking, aviation, shipping and energy-intensive heavy industry. 

Hydrogen projects are being announced and developed all over the world. Just this week, the U.S. government committed $8 billion in infrastructure funding to build out clean hydrogen hubs across the country. But not all hydrogen is created equal. Is it really a miracle fuel for deep decarbonization or is it an over-hyped climate solution that could lock in fossil fuel use?

On this episode of Political Climate, hosts Julia Pyper and Shane Skelton are joined by Rachel Fakhry, senior advocate for the climate and clean energy program at the Natural Resources Defense Council, to talk through the promises and challenges of the hydrogen economy. 

Plus, the hosts talk through President Biden’s new executive order to halt the threat of new tariffs on solar panels and boost domestic clean energy manufacturing. 

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Canary Media: Biden to halt solar tariff threat for two years
• NRDC: Hydrogen Beta Testing Must Ensure Climate-Alignment
• U.S. Department of Energy: DOE Launches Bipartisan Infrastructure Law's $8 Billion Program for Clean Hydrogen Hubs Across U.S.
• Canary Media: Which states will win out on $9.5B in federal clean hydrogen funding?
• Canary Media: Massive green hydrogen hub in Utah wins $504M federal loan guarantee
• Austrian World Summit 2022

Political Climate is brought to you by FischTank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy for bringing your work not only to wider audiences, but to the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fischtankpr.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org

Some of the most important news doesn’t make big, splashy headlines. That can be because developments unfold slowly or are super-wonky, or simply get overlooked in a busy news cycle. That’s why the Political Climate team is creating a new Newsflash series, a monthly episode in your Political Climate feed in which we’ll bring you a behind-the-scenes look at a news story you might have missed.

In this inaugural episode, host Julia Pyper and producer Maria Virginia Olano bring you snippets from an interview with Lisa Garcia, a regional administrator at the EPA, about the work the agency is doing to deploy funding from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act passed last year. It’s a huge, important topic that’s gotten far too little media coverage. As Garcia put it, “The infusion of funding for infrastructure is certainly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Canary Media: Q&A with Lisa Garcia: Getting environmental justice right at the EPA
• EPA Fact Sheet: EPA & the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
• Electrek: co.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/electrek.co/2022/05/20/biden-administration-kicks-off-5-billion-electric-clean-school-bus-program/amp/">Biden administration kicks off $5 billion electric Clean School Bus program
• The Hill: Congress needs to support EPA’s environmental protection infrastructure

Faced with record-high gas prices, more and more American consumers are looking to dump the pump. In the first three months of 2022, electric vehicle registrations shot up 60 percent, even as the overall car market shrunk. 

EVs have experienced steady sales growth over the past decade but are still far from being mainstream. Could the combination of expensive gasoline and exciting new plug-in models see the U.S. turn a corner on mass EV adoption?

On this episode of Political Climate, hosts Julia Pyper, Brandon Hurlbut, and Shane Skelton talk about the policies and innovations unlocking greater transportation electrification – as well as the challenges ahead. From manufacturing bottlenecks and raw material supplies to high up-front costs and political opposition, there are still bumps on the road mainstreaming EVs. Plus, the hosts make a new bet – and need your help!

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Canary Media: EVs can be cheaper on a monthly basis than gas-powered cars
• Canary Media: Electric heavy-duty trucks are hitting the roads in California and beyond
• Axios: Ford F-150 Lightning review: A watershed moment for electric vehicles
• Politico: The gasoline price-gouging fight to nowhere
• Political Climate: Mineral Security and Implications for the Energy Transition

Political Climate is brought to you by FischTank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy for bringing your work not only to wider audiences, but to the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fischtankpr.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org

A major push is underway to onshore energy production and manufacturing in America now that Russia’s attack on Ukraine has highlighted the vulnerabilities of global energy supply chains. But the undertaking is complicated by competing political priorities, as U.S. leaders seek to strengthen the country’s energy security while advancing its climate goals. 

On this episode of Political Climate, our hosts talk through efforts to boost American-made clean energy through executive action. They also check the status of Democrats’ budget reconciliation bill as the midterm election season approaches, and examine a new push to cut a bipartisan climate deal.

Also on the show (33.30), a conversation with Abby Hopper, CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association, about a trade case launched in the name of boosting American clean energy manufacturing that threatens to derail U.S. solar deployment – putting jobs at risk and climate goals out of reach. 

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or pretty much wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Politico: Dems grimace at Manchin’s bipartisan energy detour
• Canary Media: Will the Biden administration let one company kill US solar?
• DOE Fact Sheet: The Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal Will Deliver For American Workers, Families and Usher in the Clean Energy Future
• Climate Solutions Lab: Mapping U.S. Military Dependence on Russian Fossil Fuels

Political Climate is brought to you by FischTank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy for bringing your work not only to wider audiences, but to the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fischtankpr.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act — a historic $1.2 trillion investment package, passed by Congress on a bipartisan basis — has received little fanfare since President Biden signed it into law last November. The bill contains more than $80 billion to advance the clean energy transition and respond to climate change, but where exactly will those dollars go?

On this episode of Political Climate host Julia Pyper and producer Maria Virginia Olano speak with Leah Rubin Shen, who leads federal legislative and political engagement at Advanced Energy Economy, about how the rubber is hitting the road on infrastructure spending in states across the country. 

Plus, they discuss what’s next for President Biden’s climate agenda amid soaring gas prices and push for greater energy independence, which is fueling a national debate around increasing domestic fossil fuel production versus enhancing domestic clean energy manufacturing and deployment. 

We want to learn more about Political Climate listeners and how we can make this podcast better. Please take a couple of minutes to fill out this short survey and enter to win a $100 Amazon gift card!

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• AEE: Advanced Energy Infrastructure: A Roadmap for Implementation
• Utility Dive: Biden invokes Defense Production Act to bolster domestic battery manufacturing for EVs, energy storage
• Canary Media: Here’s where things stand with climate legislation in Congress
• Canary Media: How the infrastructure bill will fight climate change and advance clean energy

Political Climate is brought to you by FischTank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy for bringing your work not only to wider audiences, but to the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fischtankpr.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org

The Paris Agreement of 2015 set the target of limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. This week’s release of the latest climate assessment report from the U.N. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change underlines, once again, the need for deep decarbonization as quickly as possible for that goal to be met — even as world leaders rethink their energy policies amid the ongoing Russia/Ukraine conflict. 

On this episode of Political Climate, Julia Pyper hosts a discussion between renowned climate policy experts Laurence Tubiana, Rachel Kyte, David Sandalow and Adnan Amin about the progress toward meeting the Paris goals. They also discuss how to achieve equitable climate solutions and mobilize more climate finance. This conversation was originally recorded for the Zayed Sustainability Prize’s Voices of Sustainability series and republished with approval. 

We want to learn more about Political Climate listeners and how we can make this podcast better. Please take a couple of minutes to fill out this short survey and enter to win a $100 Amazon gift card!

Recommended reading:

• The Guardian: IPCC report: ‘now or never’ if world is to stave off climate disaster
• Canary Media: COP26 finance pledges are not as great as they seem
• Zayed Sustainability Prize

Political Climate is brought to you by FischTank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy for bringing your work not only to wider audiences, but to the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fis​chtankpr​.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mce​CleanEn​er​gy​.org

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Minerals and metals have a critical role to play in a low-carbon future — and a potentially controversial one, too. Conversations around extractive industries are complicated by supply chain issues, social impacts and national security concerns. This is a particularly pressing issue right now as Russia, one of the world’s top suppliers of metals and minerals, continues to wage war on Ukraine.  

The clean energy transition will require using a lot of raw materials, such as nickel, cobalt and uranium. And those materials will need to be mined and processed to make things like electric vehicle batteries, wind turbines and power nuclear plants. While clean energy is currently responsible for only a small share of global mineral demand, it is projected to grow rapidly.

Jael Holzman, mining reporter at E&E News, joins our hosts this week to discuss the hard conversations many are still avoiding on the social, environmental and security risks of mining for substances needed to build decarbonized economies.

We want to learn more about Political Climate listeners and how we can make this podcast better. Please take a couple of minutes to fill out this short survey and enter to win a $100 Amazon gift card!

Recommended reading:

• Politico: Could Russian sanctions hobble U.S. clean energy push?
• E&E News: Cobalt poses human rights test for Biden on clean energy
• E&E News: Could Russia’s invasion of Ukraine revive U.S. uranium mining?
• Canary Media: What you need to know about minerals and the clean energy transition
• Canary Media: Here are the minerals we need for batteries, solar and other clean energy tech

Political Climate is brought to you by FischTank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy for bringing your work not only to wider audiences, but to the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fischtankpr.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org 

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Russia’s brutal war on Ukraine has shone a spotlight on the complex web of energy, climate and geopolitical issues — and has arguably already changed the global energy landscape in profound and lasting ways.

The crisis has resurfaced debates on energy security and how to achieve it, with some rushing to call for increased oil and gas extraction to make up for Russian supply, while many others underscore the urgent need for renewable energy build-outs as a way to achieve energy independence.

On this episode of Political Climate, our hosts discuss President Biden's new ban on Russian oil and gas imports and what it means for the U.S. energy mix. Plus, we examine the energy security aspects of Biden's first State of the Union Address and renewed efforts to pass a reconciliation bill.

Then in the second half of the show, we turn to an interview with Anca Gurzu, a Brussels-based correspondent for the news outlet Cipher, to discuss the European perspective on the Ukraine crisis and what it means for the future of clean energy in Europe. 

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Foreign Affairs: Green Upheaval: The New Geopolitics of Energy
• Canary Media: How fast can Europe wean itself off Russian gas?
• E&E News: Manchin outlines energy demands as Dems mull next steps

Political Climate is brought to you by FischTank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy for bringing your work not only to wider audiences, but to the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fischtankpr.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org 

State legislatures around the country have a major impact on climate policy, and yet state political races often go unnoticed. Caroline Spears says that needs to change. 

Caroline created Climate Cabinet Action to help state leaders develop strong platforms and communication strategies that embrace climate as a priority. Recently, the group published a Climate Cabinet Scorecard — the first national tool to hold state legislators accountable for their climate votes. 

On this episode of Political Climate, our hosts speak with Caroline Spears about the scorecard and how voters and donors can help candidates run, win, and legislate on the climate crisis.

Recommended reading:

• Climate Cabinet Scorecard
• Quartz: Which US state legislators have the best records on climate-change policy?
• Canary: The top 6 ambitious state climate laws passed in 2021
• Political Climate: Electing Climate Candidates

Political Climate is brought to you by FischTank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy for bringing your work not only to wider audiences, but to the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fischtankpr.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org 

Senator Alex Padilla recently wrapped up his first year in the U.S. Senate as the first Latino to represent the state of California. It's been an eventful year, to put it mildly.

On this episode of Political Climate, Sen. Padilla sits down with Julia, Brandon and Shane to discuss energy equity, infrastructure, prospects for the Build Back Better bill, and the future of political discourse in the U.S.

The senator outlines legislation he introduced to help address the growing threat from wildfires in the West and his work to expand domestic U.S. production of cleantech mineral resources. Plus, he shares his outlook on voting rights legislation, filibuster reform and the upcoming midterm election.

When it comes to addressing top Democratic priorities, the Sen. Padilla's message: "We're not giving up that easily."

Recommended reading:

• Padilla Bill to Improve Federal Wildfire Response Gains Momentum in the Senate
• Times of San Diego: California Senators Seek to Expand Federal Authority Over Threatened Salton Sea
• PV Magazine: magazine-usa.com/2021/11/05/ossoff-bill-would-address-rooftop-solars-cost-burden-on-lmi-people/">Ossoff bill would address rooftop solar’s cost burden on LMI people

Political Climate is brought to you by Fischtank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy for bringing your work not only to wider audiences, but to the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fischtankpr.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org

President Joe Biden campaigned for the White House on a number key climate promises. When he officially took office, hopes were high that bold climate action would be at the center of the Biden policy platform. One year later, where does his record stand? On this episode of Political Climate, our hosts look at what the Biden administration has achieved during the president’s first year in office.

Of course, a big component of President Biden’s climate agenda is still in limbo. The Build Back Better Act would devote $555 billion to clean energy and climate measures, along with a suite of social programs. Prospects for passing the full bill in the Senate were quashed late last year. But now there’s talk of moving some provisions forward in a trimmed down version of BBB, one that could get the 50 Democrat votes needed to pass. 

To kick off the show, hosts Julia Pyper, Brandon Hurlbut and Shane Skelton evaluate the odds of a climate focused Build Back Better Act making it across the finish line. 

Recommended reading:

• Politico: The climate kinks in BBB
• White House: President Biden Signs Executive Order Catalyzing America’s Clean Energy Economy Through Federal Sustainability
• Nature: Has Biden followed the science? What researchers say
• Canary Media: How the infrastructure bill will fight climate change and advance clean energy
• Grist: Executive Reaction: Biden vowed to undo Trump’s toxic legacy. We’re tracking his progress.

Political Climate is brought to you by Fischtank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy for bringing your work not only to wider audiences, but to the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fischtankpr.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice as much renewable energy as the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org 

California Governor Gavin Newsom proposed spending $22.5 billion on tackling the climate crisis this week, as part of his $286.4 billion budget proposal. The so-called California Blueprint includes funding for everything from electric buses and building retrofits to support services for firefighters.

As other states have stepped up on climate, some have accused California of falling behind. Could Newsom's plan reclaim the Golden State's title as climate change leader?

On this episode, we discuss the climate and clean energy provisions in Newsom's budget proposal with Lauren Sanchez, the governor's Senior Advisor for Climate and former advisor to the Biden-Harris administration.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• LA Times: COVID-19, children, climate change are focal points in Newsom’s budget plan
• Sacramento Bee: Gavin Newsom seeks to reclaim California’s status as climate change leader in his budget
• CNBC: California’s blueprint budget has $6.1 billion for electric vehicle initiatives
• Canary Media: California’s Gov. Newsom says ​‘changes need to be made’ to the state’s polarizing net-metering proposal

Political Climate is brought to you by Fischtank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy of bringing your work to not only wider audiences, but the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fischtankpr.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice the amount of renewable energy compared to the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org 

2021 was a productive year for climate policy – particularly for U.S. states. Both red and blue states passed ambitious climate bills last year. Several of the new laws address emissions from multiple sectors of the economy, include strong labor provisions and center environmental justice in meaningful ways.

In the first Political Climate episode of 2022, we look at some of the biggest political wins of 2021 that took place around the country. From Oregon and Illinois joining the party on 100% emissions-free electricity, to a wide-ranging cap-and-trade bill in Washington and a net zero goal in North Carolina, there was no shortage of action.

Host Julia Pyper speaks with Canary Media’s Jeff St. John about key elements of these new state policies, how they came to pass, and why they’re so significant. 

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Canary Media: The top 6 ambitious state climate laws passed in 2021
• Political Climate: Winning political messages with David Roberts
• Canary Media: Washington state now has the nation’s most ambitious climate policy
• Canary Media: Illinois’ new climate bill is ambitious, justice-focused and a model for the nation

Political Climate is brought to you by Fischtank PR. From PR and digital marketing to content writing, the team at FischTank helps you develop a strategy of bringing your work to not only wider audiences, but the right audience. To learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and services, visit fischtankpr.com

Political Climate is also brought to you by MCE. Today, MCE offers nearly 40 Bay Area communities almost twice the amount of renewable energy compared to the state average. The power of MCE is about more than clean energy — it’s the power of people over profit. Learn more at mceCleanEnergy.org 

Is Build Back Better really dead? Could the climate and clean energy provisions live on? Political Climate weighs in on the timely issue of Senator Manchin’s “no” on President Biden’s marquee legislation. Plus, Brandon, Shane and Julia share some 2022 predictions.

In the second half of the show we look at the troubling rise in global methane emissions. Methane is 80 times more potent as a global warming gas than carbon dioxide, and is responsible for roughly one-quarter of the climate warming we see today. Recognizing the scope and scale of the issue, the United States and European Union recently spearheaded a Global Methane Pledge at COP26, which has been signed by around 100 countries. In addition, the U.S. EPA has proposed new rules to tackle methane leaks from oil and gas production. 

To round out the episode, we speak to Sarah Smith, program director of super pollutants at the Clean Air Task Force, about why methane emissions are such a big problem and what’s being done to address it. 

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

P.S. All we want for Christmas are your Apple Podcast reviews! If you have a moment over the holidays, we’d love to get your feedback. Your ratings help us grow and if there’s a topic you’d like the podcast to cover, please let us know!

Recommended reading:

• NYT: climate-change-build-back-better.html">What the Stalled Build Back Better Bill Means for Climate, in One Chart
• Canary Media: The US oil patch is the Wild West. We need regulation to control the sector’s methane emissions
• CNN: Biden announces new methane rules and launches global pledge to slash planet-warming emissions

The clean energy transition is accelerating — but progress isn’t always smooth. 

The global energy crisis and related price spikes have raised some difficult political questions around the push for decarbonization. At the same time, local opposition to clean energy projects threatens to undermine meeting national net zero goals. Similarly, complexities around accessing materials needed to make cleantech solutions threaten to disrupt the sector.

These are the kinds of tough issues that longtime climate and energy journalist Amy Harder is used to covering — and continues to cover in her role as executive editor at Cipher, a recently-launched news publication backed by Bill Gates' Breakthrough Energy. In this episode, podcast host Julia Pyper, with co-hosts Brandon Hurlbut and Shane Skelton of policy firm Boundary Stone Partners, speak to Amy about some of the latest trends and challenges in the race to net zero emissions.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts. Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Cipher: What’s really driving the energy crisis and how cleantech fits in
• Cipher: U.S. climate and energy laws push rest of world, IEA chief says
• Cipher: What happened in Main matters in Glasgow

As we enter the holiday season, our hosts run through 10 powerful stats that will help you navigate the inevitable question from a curious family member: “So, what’s going on with the climate?” 

As a listener of this podcast, you are probably no stranger to these conversations with loved ones. But this year in particular — amid more in-person visits and a slew of recent headlines on climate policy, climate impacts, and global climate summits — there is a lot of catching up to do. These stats will equip you with the content you need to deliver a brief climate keynote address over the third helping of potatoes. 

To kick things off, we catch up on the big ticket items in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill and what’s next for the Build Back Better Act, which together could be the most significant pieces of American climate legislation passed in our lifetimes. (And that’s a good thing, should your aunt ask).

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• White House: The Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal Fact Sheet
• Princeton University's REPEAT Project
• Canary Media: The vast majority of Americans love solar and wind power
• E2: Clean Jobs America
• IHS: us-renewable-procurement-outlook-optimism.html">Corporate US renewable procurement outlook
• IEA: COP26 climate pledges could help limit global warming to 1.8 °C
• BBC: How China shapes the world's coal
• Inside EVs: Global Plug-In Car Sales Doubled To A New Record, September 2021
• California Solar and Storage Association: An S.O.S. In The Sand – Governor: More Solar, Not Oil
• Ars Technica: com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2021/11/natural-gas-customers-in-texas-get-stuck-with-3-4-billion-cold-snap-surcharge/?amp=1">Natural gas customers in Texas get stuck with $3.4 billion cold-snap surcharge

Climate finance has been center stage at COP26. Meeting the globe’s climate goals will require mobilizing trillions of public and private dollars. So what exactly does that look like?

During the first week of the UN climate summit, 450 financial institutions with $130 trillion in assets under management pledged to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. The announcement from the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) led by UN Special Envoy Mark Carney represents a massive commitment to shift funds out of fossil fuels and into creating sustainable economies.

But will the promise live up to the hype? We break down the significance of this and other major finance pledges made at COP26 with Justin Guay, director for global climate strategy at the Sunrise Project.

Plus, a commitment from wealthy countries to spend $100 billion per year on helping poorer nations mitigate and adapt to climate change remains a sticking point in the global climate negotiations. But even if rich nations deliver more money in climate aid, many countries will see little benefit because they face enormous hurdles accessing the funds available.

In the second half of this episode we speak to Benjamin Bartle, project director with RMI's Climate Finance Access Network (CFAN) about what it really takes to put these climate dollars to work.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Bloomberg: Carney Unveils $130 Trillion in Climate Finance Commitments
• Scientific American: U.S. Agrees to End Fossil Fuel Financing Abroad
• AP: UK sets net-zero plan for its financial sector
• RMI: The Crisis of Climate Finance: “Access Means Survival"

Where are the offshore wind projects in America? While turbines have become a familiar sight in states across the country, offshore wind is virtually non-existent. 

Even with thousands of miles of coastline, the U.S. only has around 40 MW of offshore wind production, most of it from a single wind farm. This pales in comparison to other parts of the world, particularly Europe, which has more than 25 GW of offshore wind capacity from more than 100 offshore wind farms.

But the market landscape for offshore wind in the U.S. is poised to change dramatically, with industry and policy efforts aligning to finally access this untapped clean energy resource.

In this episode, we discuss this new frontier in the U.S. energy transition with Heather Zichal, Chief Executive Officer, of the American Clean Power Association.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Heather Zichal: Testimony House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Energy Subcommittee “Offshore Wind, Onshore Benefits: Growing the Domestic Wind Energy Industry”
• USC Schwarzenegger Institute: California’s Offshore Wind Electricity Opportunity
• Canary: Could the US lead​​ the world in floating offshore wind? 
• Canary: California offshore wind could save billions and help prevent blackouts. What’s holding it back?
• Axios: spending-plan-500-billion-climate-167e44d7-3571-4a49-84dd-f70045449028.html">Biden plan expected to include at least $500B for climate

Policy debates on Capitol Hill today fit into a bigger political picture. In Part 2 of this conversation with David Roberts, hosts Julia Pyper, Brandon Hurlbut, and Shane Skelton talk about political sentiments, campaign messaging, and things Democrats don’t want to hear — as well as asymmetry in the media landscape and its impact on electoral politics today.

Plus, David shares what he’s genuinely excited about when it comes to clean energy technology and how Illinois recently passed a big, bold climate bill that offers a new model for the nation. David Roberts is the founder and writer of the newsletter Volts, host of the podcast by the same name, and Editor-At-Large at Canary Media. 

Check out Part 1 of this conversation on last week's episode. Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Canary: The unstoppably good news about clean energy
• Canary: Illinois’ new climate bill is ambitious, justice-focused and a model for the nation
• NYT: david-shor-education-polarization.html">David Shor Is Telling Democrats What They Don’t Want to Hear

David Roberts is worried. Democrats have control of the House, Senate and the White House and an opportunity to pass bold climate policy and political reform — perhaps their last opportunity for a long time — but are stuck in political gridlock. The stakes are high, with procedural deadlines and the COP26 global climate summit looming. 

On this episode, Julia Pyper, Brandon Hurlbut and Shane Skelton speak to clean energy and politics reporter David Roberts about the state of play in Washington D.C. and why he’s both anxious and (surprisingly) optimistic. Roberts is the founder and writer of the newsletter Volts, host of the podcast by the same name, and Editor-At-Large at Canary Media. 

Part 2 of this conversation will air on the podcast feed next week! Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• Politico: Dem tension keeps spiking ahead of make-or-break 3 weeks
• Canary: What’s in the latest version of House Dems’ proposed clean energy legislation?
• Axios: bidens-planet-b-a5f17e0a-f281-48d6-8dc9-e4b0d6c2acf1.html">Pondering Biden's Plan(et) B
• Volts: The most important job ahead for Democrats
• MSNBC: All In with Chris Hayes, 10/12/21

With several major deadlines looming, U.S. lawmakers remain divided on how to move forward with the bipartisan infrastructure bill and Democrats’ larger $3.5 billion spending package — both of which contain critical funding and programs to fight climate change and promote clean energy. 

At the same time, Congress must immediately pass a spending package to avoid a government shutdown. Also (because there isn't enough going on) lawmakers must act quickly to raise the debt limit, with the nation’s borrowing authority set to expire on October 18, which would be devastating for the U.S. economy.

On this episode of Political Climate, hosts Julia Pyper, Brandon Hurlbut and Shane Skelton discuss the rifts on Capitol Hill and what to expect from Congress in the coming days. Plus, they talk through some of the most significant commitments made by governments and the private sector during Climate Week NYC — a stepping stone to the UN’s COP26 climate summit.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Recommended reading:

• The Guardian: Fate of Biden’s economic agenda at stake as House faces crucial vote
• CNN: Why we're willing to put our votes on the line for the Build Back Better Act
• NYT: hfc-climate-change.html">Biden Administration Makes First Major Move to Regulate Greenhouse Gases
• Canary Media: Climate Week NYC 2021

Senator Martin Heinrich of New Mexico is no stranger to climate and energy issues. In recent months, he’s sponsored legislation on zero-emission homes, electric transmission, energy storage, a civilian climate corps, and more. Now, these proposals are being considered as part of Democrats’ sweeping $3.5 trillion budget plan. What’s likely to stay in and what’s likely to get cut?

On this episode of Political Climate, Sen. Heinrich weighs in on what’s at stake with the budget reconciliation and bipartisan infrastructure bills, and how climate impacts are influencing political action. Plus, we discuss the significance of President Biden’s cross-country climate tour and Governor Gavin Newsom’s big win in the California recall.

Recommended reading:

• Canary Media: What’s in the latest version of House Dems’ proposed clean energy legislation?
• Rewiring America: Electrifying America’s Future Resolution
• change-electricity-fossil-fuels.html">NYT: Your Next Car and Clothes Dryer Could Help Save Our Planet

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

P.S. We have a brand new show page on Canary Media! Check it out. 

The U.S. political climate has changed a lot in 2021, especially when it comes to climate and energy issues on Capitol Hill. The Political Climate podcast has changed too. Rather than debate macro politics, we’re focused on analyzing concrete proposals, policy choices, and getting at the “how” of achieving our shared climate goals. Unlike in the past, there is no shortage of policy action!

On August 10, the U.S. Senate approved a $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill — the largest spending for infrastructure projects in the country in over a decade — with bipartisan support. Senators also approved a budget measure along party lines that paved the way for Democrats’ $3.5 trillion spending package, which includes a suite of climate and social initiatives.

After a weeks-long stalemate between moderates and leadership in the House over the two large pieces of legislation, it’s now crunch time for Democrats to pass their climate and clean energy priorities. This episode offers an insider perspective on how policy negotiations are evolving, what the top priorities are for House and Senate leadership, as well as the Biden White House, and what we can expect in the next month as both the bipartisan infrastructure bill and Democrats’ massive spending package move forward (or not). 

Recommended resources:

• Vox: What’s in the new infrastructure bill — and why it’s a big deal
• Canary Media: Infrastructure bill contains less transmission funding than advertised
• Canary Media: We need gargantuan investment in EV charging stations. Where will the money come from?
• E&E: Uncertainty on reconciliation as House returns
• Canary Media: Climate policy crunch time: We need Congress to pass a clean energy standard and tax credits

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

Political Climate is coming back to the airwaves! Catch new episodes every two weeks — wherever you get podcasts — starting Thursday, September 2nd. 

Brandon Hurlbut, Shane Skelton and Julia Pyper will be discussing all of the climate and energy issues that you want to know about, along with a roster of fantastic guests who know the ins and outs of the politics and policies shaping the future of our planet. 

This reboot of Political Climate is presented in partnership with Canary Media, and with support from the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.

There is no shortage of action on climate and energy these days. Get the latest news and analysis with a side of debate and friendly banter on upcoming episodes of Political Climate.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts. Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

We always new that 2021 would start with a bang — between the Georgia Senate runoff election, the inauguration of President-Elect Joe Biden, cabinet announcements, coronavirus relief and, of course, earnest discussions on the future of American climate policy. 

A deadly assault on the United States Capitol incited by the President was not on the calendar, although the seeds of division and misinformation were sown long ago. 

So what’s the path forward? 

Democrats have secured a narrow majority in Congress, which will have an enormous impact on how policy moves in the months ahead. We discuss pathways for climate action. We also opine on the future of the Republican Party and how that could influence the broader political landscape.

But first, we kick it all off with some Political Climate news!

Recommended reading:

• Volts: What the Georgia Senate wins do (and don't) mean for climate policy
• WaPo: Schwarzenegger compares Capitol mob violence to Kristallnacht destruction by Nazis in viral video
• Vox: How Joe Biden plans to use executive powers to fight climate change

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate!

The past few years have been a mixed bag for climate. U.S. emissions declined to their lowest level in three decade this year, but these reductions came at an incredible cost as the economy shut down amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

The challenge now is to make these emissions cuts sustainable for years to come, while getting millions of Americans back to work.

We dig into a new analysis on how to put the U.S. on a path to deep decarbonization and economic growth on this episode of Political Climate — the final episode in our "Relief, Rescue, Rebuild" series. Lindsey Walter, senior policy advisor for Third Way’s Climate and Energy program, breaks down the policies and technology pathways to reach net zero emissions by 2050 in an equitable and affordable way. 

Plus, we speak to two wind energy technicians who are training the next generation of wind workers in the Midwest about how the industry has affected their region, the opportunities for growth and their message to policymakers. 

Mike Gengler is the wind energy coordinator at Iowa Lakes Community College in Estherville, Iowa. Jay Johnson in an assistant professor for the wind energy technician program at the Lake Region State College in Devil’s Lake North Dakota.

The "Relief, Rescue, Rebuild" series is supported by the think tank Third Way. The series theme song was created by @AYMusik.

Recommended resources:

• USA Today: Due to COVID-19, 2020 greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. are predicted to drop to lowest level in three decades
• Third Way: Congress Makes a Downpayment on Our Clean Energy Future
• Princeton: Big but affordable effort needed for America to reach net-zero emissions by 2050
• Relief, Rescue, Rebuild
• Path to Zero

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate!

It will take a massive war-time mobilization effort to effectively address the climate emergency, argues Saul Griffith — inventor, MacArthur genius fellow, CEO of Otherlab, and co-founder of Rewiring America, an organization dedicated to creating millions of American jobs while combating climate change. 

So, what does a war-time mobilization effort look like? How much will it cost? Will we have to make sacrifices in the process? What does this shift mean for the future of utilities? And will politicians ever get on board? Griffith explains in this episode of Political Climate. 

Plus, he weighs in on the massive year-end spending bill that passed in Congress this week and includes significant climate and clean energy measures. If signed into law, will this legislation put the U.S. on the right track to achieve deep decarbonization?

Recommended reading:

• Rewiring America Handbook
• No Place Like Home: Fighting Climate Change (and Saving Money) by Electrifying America’s Households
• Mobilizing for a zero carbon America: Jobs, jobs, jobs, and more jobs
• next-decade-climate.html">NYT: To Cut Emissions to Zero, U.S. Needs to Make Big Changes in Next 10 Years
• change-stimulus.html">NYT: Climate Change Legislation Included in Coronavirus Relief Deal
• 'Need for Speed': Why Solving Climate Change Is About More Than CO2

Political Climate is hosted by Julia Pyper, Brandon Hurlbut and Shane Skelton and supported by the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe to on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts! We're also on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

Crowdfunding, blockchain, artificial intelligence and neobanks. What do all of these buzzwords have to do with fighting climate change? 

On this episode of Political Climate’s DITCHED series, host Julia Pyper speaks to the authors of a new report on “climate fintech,” an emerging ecosystem that leverages digital technology to help move more capital into climate change solutions. The report, published by the startup accelerator New Energy Nexus, offers a valuable overview of what this rapidly evolving ecosystem looks like today. 

Andrew Chang, New Energy Nexus climate fintech program director based in Shanghai, and Aaron McCreary, New Energy Nexus fintech lead for Europe and the United States, describe how and why traditional finance is being disrupted by new technology — and what this means for decarbonization. 

Recommended resources:

• Climate Fintech Report: An Emerging Ecosystem of Climate Capital Catalysts
• DITCHED: Greening the Banks

If you’re just joining us, the DITCHED series is all about fossil fuel divestment and the rapidly evolving world of green finance. We’re airing these episodes in addition to our regular Thursday shows on climate and energy politics and policies.

You can find all segments in the DITCHED series on the Political Climate podcast feed, which is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, or wherever you get podcasts! You can also find the series on the Political Climate website or via the leading independent environmental news platform Our Daily Planet.

2020 has been a remarkable year. It witnessed the coronavirus pandemic, an economic crash, a historic and divisive U.S. election, widespread protests for racial justice and more.

And yet, amid all of the turbulence, the world took several major steps toward realizing a low carbon future.

The numbers are still coming in and the trends are still formalizing, but we have a pretty good sense of how the climate and energy landscape evolved over the past several months.

On this episode of Political Climate, hosts Brandon Hurlbut, Shane Skelton and Julia Pyper discuss how climate action and the clean energy transition fared in 2020.

Recommended reading:

• Reuters: Solar the new 'king of electricity' as renewables make up bigger slice of supply: IEA
• S&P: Global emissions peaked in 2019 as pandemic hastens energy transition – report
• DITCHED: Why 2020 Could Be a Tipping Point for Fossil Fuels
• Inside EVs: Global Plug-In Electric Car Sales October 2020: Near Record Level
• E&E: Biden's energy agenda hinges on FERC, red states
• Atlantic: Why the 2020s Could Be as Dangerous as the 1850s
• PC: David Roberts on 'Radical' Climate Action and Political Tribalism

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Cities and states have powerful roles to play in divesting from fossil fuels and directing investments toward sustainable industries. There are a number of ways for these sub-national actors to participate in the divest/invest movement and help pave the way for more widespread action. 

In this episode of Political Climate’s DITCHED series, we go to the home of Wall Street and look at steps being taken by New York City and New York State to accelerate the movement of funds from brown to green resources. 

We speak to NYC’s chief climate policy advisor Dan Zarrilli about the city’s pledge to fully divest its pension funds from fossil fuels. Then, in the second half of the episode, we speak to NY Green Bank President Alfred Griffin about how green banks operate and the role they fill in transforming financial markets.

*Since this podcast aired, New York State announced it will divest its $226 billion pension fund from fossil fuels, becoming the largest pension fund to make such a commitment to date. Both New York City and New York State have now pledged to fully divest from fossil fuels. New York State went even further by setting a 2040 carbon-free target for all parts of its portfolio.

Recommended reading:

• NYC: Mayor, Comptroller, Trustees Announce First-In-The-Nation Goal to Divest From Fossil Fuels
• Smart Cities Dive: 12 major cities pledge fossil fuel divestment
• Inside Climate: Could New York’s Youth Finally Convince the State to Divest Its Pension of Fossil Fuels?
• NRDC: First Global Survey of Green Banks Finds Rapid Growth in their Numbers and Importance in Low-Carbon Finance
• Vox: New York just passed the most ambitious climate target in the country

Catch all DITCHED episodes in addition to our regular Thursday shows! Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

When Neil Chatterjee was appointed to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission by President Trump in 2017, stakeholders in the climate and clean energy space were concerned about what his agenda would be. Headlines dubbed him “McConnell’s coal guy” and “fossil fuel champion Chatterjee,” referring to his role as a former aide to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY). 

But Chatterjee has proven to be much more than a “coal guy,” despite his sympathies for struggling Kentucky coal communities. The Republican leader recently voted in favor of rules supporting distributed energy resources and carbon pricing, and views these decisions as powerful steps in advancing the energy transition. 

His openness to supporting policies that benefit clean energy may have cost him his leadership position at FERC. President Trump demoted Chatterjee from the chairman role last month, although he remains on the commission and will serve alongside two new appointees confirmed by the Senate this week.

In this episode, we speak to FERC Commissioner Neil Chatterjee about several of the agency’s recent rulemakings, past controversies and his outlook for the future of U.S. energy policy in today’s shifting political landscape.

Recommended reading:

• GTM: Why Rick Perry’s Coal-Friendly Market Intervention Was Legally Doomed
• GTM: FERC Orders PJM to Restrict State-Backed Renewables in Its Capacity Market
• Utility Dive: FERC confirms carbon pricing jurisdiction in wholesale markets, Chatterjee 'encourages' proposals
• Utility Dive: Competitive generators move away from FERC's PJM order, toward carbon pricing
• GTM: ‘Game-Changer’ FERC Order Opens Up Wholesale Grid Markets to Distributed Energy Resources
• Quartz: How one obscure federal agency is clearing the path for a US carbon price
• The Hill: Senate approves two energy regulators, completing panel

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate!

2020 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for fossil fuel divestment. 

Despite economic disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic, a growing number of countries, companies and financial institutions are committing to quit coal and are beginning to ditch oil and gas projects, too. 

In this episode of Political Climate’s special DITCHED series, host Julia Pyper speaks to Tim Buckley at the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) about what’s driving the increase in fossil fuel exits around the globe, including in historically coal-dependent economies such as China and India. 

Will 2020 prove to be a tipping point in the energy-finance transition?

Recommended resources:

• IEEFA: Why 2020 is turning out be a pivotal year for fossil fuel exits
• IEA: Renewable power is defying the Covid crisis with record growth this year and next
• Argus: Coal India to diversify into solar power
• tech.org/news/indian-solar-tariffs-fall-to-record-low-following-seci-auction">PV Tech: Indian solar tariffs fall to record low following SECI auction
• Reuters: Satellites reveal major new gas industry methane leaks
• 2020.pdf">IEEFA: Is the Gas Industry Facing Its Volkswagen Moment?

Episodes of DITCHED will air Mondays over the next several weeks. Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts! You can also find DITCHED episodes via Our Daily Planet.

The coronavirus pandemic has created an opportunity to reboot the American economy in a way that is cleaner and helps to mitigate climate change for future generations. But it’s not only that, this is also a moment to build back the U.S. economy with more resilience. 

The word “resilience” is thrown around frequently. But what does it really mean? And how should leaders be factoring resilience into their recovery efforts?

In this episode, we speak to Norfolk, Virginia City Councilwoman Andria McClellan about how her coastal city, home to the world's largest naval station, is coping with rising seas and worsening flooding. And we hear what she hopes lawmakers in Washington D.C. will do to help address the growing crisis. 

But first, we check in with Josh Freed, founder and leader of Third Way's Climate and Energy Program. We discuss how President-Elect Joe Biden’s administration is shaping up and what to watch for on the policy front post-election. 

This is the fourth episode in our "Relief, Rescue, Rebuild" series supported by Third Way. The series theme song was created by @AYMusik.

Recommended reading:

• E&E: Here are Biden's next moves on climate
• WaPo: Climate Change Turns the Tide on Waterfront Living
• SciAm: A Running List of Record-Breaking Natural Disasters in 2020
• New Deal Forum: Policy Proposals for Growing a Clean Economy and Protecting Communities
• Third Way: Clean Energy Targets are Trending

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate!

A growing number of financial institutions are moving their investments from fossil fuels into less polluting projects and resources. So what do oil and gas companies make of this shift?

Some of them are waking up to the clean energy transition in response to investor pressure. But there are leaders and laggards when it comes to oil and gas companies and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. There are also valid concerns about greenwashing. And yet, some of these firms are fundamentally reshaping the way that they do business.

In this episode, the latest in Political Climate’s special DITCHED series, we look at the pressures oil and gas companies are under to go low-carbon with Valentina Kretzschmar, vice president of corporate research at the research firm Wood Mackenzie.

Recommended resources:

• FT: Why ExxonMobil is sticking with oil as rivals look to a greener future
• WoodMac: Could clean energy be the winner in the oil price war?
• and-total-report-big-drop-in-profits-but-made-clean-energy-investments.html">NYT: Shell and Total report big drop in profits, but made clean-energy investments.
• Earther: Maybe It's Time to Retire the Phrase 'Big Oil'
• E&E: How one fossil fuel company became a green giant
• Political Climate: Is There a Role for Oil and Gas in a Green Recovery?

Episodes of DITCHED will air Mondays over the next several weeks. Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts! You can also find DITCHED episodes via Our Daily Planet.

In the past two years, climate change has gone from the back burner to the center stage. Why? It all started with a protest in House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office in 2018. 

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez teamed up with a then-obscure youth activist group called Sunrise Movement to launch the fight for a Green New Deal. It took a lot of planning, courage, and luck to make the protest happen. We bring you the inside story of the Pelosi sit-in on this special episode from Generation Green New Deal, a new podcast from Critical Frequency.

Host Sam Eilertsen takes a look at how scrappy organizations led by teenagers and twenty-somethings have brought the U.S. closer than ever to addressing the issue that will define the future of humanity: climate change. This episode features Varshini Prakash and Sarah Duckett of Sunrise Movement and Waleed Shahid of Justice Democrats.

Listen and subscribe to Generation Green New Deal on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Banks don’t just hold on to your dollars and cents, they also play a role in addressing the climate crisis. 

In the latest episode of Political Climate's DITCHED series, we take a closer look at the banking sector and what institutions like JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, Wells Fargo and others can do to fight global warming.

Patrick McCully, climate and energy director at the Rainforest Action Network, explains how activists are pressuring banks to clean up their act through initiatives like Stop the Money Pipeline. 

Plus, Joe Sanberg, founder of the financial firm Aspiration, explains how this traditional bank alternative is putting climate at the center of its business strategy. 

But first, we kick off the episode with Monica Medina and Miro Korenha, founders of leading independent environmental news platform Our Daily Planet, which Political Climate is thrilled to be partnering with to bring you the DITCHED podcast series!

Recommended reading:

• Reuters: Fed moves closer to joining global peers in climate-change fight
• Ceres: Measuring and Addressing Climate Risk for Banks
• Fortune: How one of the world’s biggest banks plans to tackle climate change
• RAN: Banking on Climate Change 2020
• Banking Dive: Aspiration CEO banks on customers' social conscience

Episodes of DITCHED will air Mondays over the next several weeks. Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Young Americans voted in record numbers during the 2020 election and played a key role in tipping the scales to Joe Biden. Early research shows that climate change was a major driver of that robust turnout.

The Sunrise Movement and other environmental groups mounted extensive campaigns to register and mobilize voters to oppose President Trump and vote climate champions into office. 

Biden’s climate platform isn’t the Green New Deal plan that many climate activists called for, and Democrats will have a tough time passing progressive climate policies unless they win both Senate runoff races in Georgia. Still, Donald Trump’s defeat gives the planet a better chance of avoiding an apocalyptic future. 

We speak to first-time presidential election voters, Troy Distelrath in Michigan and Gabriela Rodriguez in Florida, about what they want to see next from their political leaders.

Plus, while Biden’s win represents a new era in the climate fight, the United States remains deeply divided and the policy path forward remains murky. So in the second half of this episode, we speak to Andreas Karelas about his critically acclaimed new book Climate Courage, and how to advance climate solutions in these polarized times. 

Recommended reading:

• Inside Climate: Young Voters, Motivated by Climate Change and Environmental Justice, Helped Propel Biden’s Campaign
• Boston Globe: Biden has a climate mandate
• Tufts CIRCLE Report: Election Week 2020
• Climate Courage

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter and Instagram @Poli_Climate.

Americans are waiting with bated breath for the results of a long and contentious election. At the time of publication, former Democratic Vice President Joe Biden looks poised to take the White House, while Republicans are likely to hold on to the Senate. But the final outcome of this unprecedented pandemic election remains uncertain, with ballots still being counted in several key states.

In this episode, we discuss what we know so far — from the top of the ticket down to local ballot initiatives — and what those results mean for climate and clean energy policy. 

Then we look at what a divided Congress would spell for a Biden presidency and the future of his ambitious climate plan. From solar tax credits, to vehicle fuel economy standards, to oil drilling permits, what's likely to advance and what doesn't stand chance? We discuss with Glenn Schwartz, director of environmental and energy policy at Rapidan Energy Group. 

Recommended reading:

• state-house-legislature-governors.html">NYT: Democrats’ ‘Blue Wave’ Crashed in Statehouses Across the Country
• Washington Examiner: Republicans win key House races with energy policy implications
• GTM: Prospect of Republican Senate Majority Narrows Democrats’ Options on Clean Energy Policy
• Law 360: Nevada Voters Approve Renewable Energy Mandate

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

What comes after November 3? As presidential candidates make their closing arguments, many stakeholders in the climate and energy community are already looking beyond Election Day. 

In this episode, experts discuss the top action items they’re watching for in a potential Biden versus returning Trump administration. What are the most tactical policy moves? Who will be making decisions? How will the private sector respond? What role will the courts play?

We hear from Josh Freed, founder of Third Way’s Climate and Energy Program. Podcast co-hosts Brandon Hurlbut, senior advisor at NGP Energy Technology Partners III, and Shane Skelton, energy policy consulting firm S2C Pacific, also weigh in. 

In the second half of the show (39:00), we discuss the ongoing health and environmental crisis in cities with high levels of lead poisoning. While it doesn’t appear in print, grassroots activists say tackling this issue is very much on the ballot this year. We speak to Michelle Mabson of Black Millennials for Flint about what she wants to see from political leaders. 

This is the fourth episode in our "Relief, Rescue, Rebuild" series supported by the think tank Third Way. The series theme song was created by @AYMusik.

Recommended reading: 

• HuffPost: EPA Veterans Eyed As Potential Picks To Lead The Agency If Biden Wins
• E&E: House races to watch on energy, environment
• Third Way: The Election Climate
• Path to Zero

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

At least 40 million Americans have already cast a ballot in early voting, with still more than a week until Election Day.  

In this episode of Political Climate, we examine if environmental issues are mobilizing voters the way that analysts anticipated. Who are those voters and do they hold sway? We discuss with Nathaniel Stinnett, founder of the Environmental Voter Project, a non-partisan organization focused on identifying inactive environmentalists across the United States and turning them into reliable voters in every election. 

This year, the stakes are especially high. Control of the U.S. Senate is very much in play, while Joe Biden and Donald Trump duke it out for the White House with wildly different policy platforms. Could environmental voters tip the scales?

We also consider how fracking and natural disasters are playing into the 2020 election cycle, as well as the rise of “big green” political donors. Plus, we check in on a Texas election bet. 

Recommended reading:

• WaPo: Early Voting Numbers So Far
• NPR: Wall Street Is A Big Source Of Campaign Cash For Democrats
• change-biden.html">NYT: 'Climate Donors’ Flock to Biden to Counter Trump’s Fossil Fuel Money
• Guardian: Trump has made fracking an election issue. Has he misjudged Pennsylvania?
• NPR: MacArthur 'Genius' Brings National Attention To Local Fight Against Sewage Failures

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

There is a lot of money in American politics. Campaign spending in 2020 is expected to reach $11 billion dollars — making it the most expensive election in U.S. history. 

In light of these growing dollar figures, a group of billionaire donors from across the political spectrum say they’re laying down arms and joining forces to transform politics and tackle critical issues, such as climate change. 

The action plan is entitled: In This Together.

In this episode, we speak to Dallas real estate scion and environmentalist Trammell S. Crow about why he and social entrepreneur Bill Shireman launched this new collaborative effort and how they plan to redirect billions in political spending toward solutions that can unite a governing majority of Americans, from left to right.

**From now until November 3rd the Political Climate podcast will donate $2 for every new subscriber to the American Red Cross for every new subscription to the show! If you’re already a subscriber, share the podcast with a friend. 

To participate, simply have a new subscriber send a screenshot of their subscription on whichever podcasting platform they like best to politicalclimatepodcast@gmail.com. Or send us a message via Twitter or Instagram @poli_climate. That’s it!**

Recommended reading:

• In This Together: How Republicans, Democrats, Capitalists and Activists Are Uniting to Tackle Climate Change and More
• Dallas Innovates: EarthX’s Trammell S. Crow Launches ‘World’s Only’ Environmental Conservation Streaming Platform
• The Hill: EarthX Founder Trammell S. Crow talks about EarthX and the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

How do you elect political candidates who will make tackling climate change a priority? In this episode, we speak to two groups attempting to figure that out and put climate change at the center of races up and down the ballot. 

In 2018, Caroline Spears launched the Climate Cabinet Action Fund to offer bespoke climate data, policy ideas and messaging suggestions to candidates and lawmakers. The organization currently focuses on the state level, where races are low-budget but highly consequential. 

We speak to Caroline about the policy “menus” that Climate Cabinet creates for individual candidates, and dig into the role that special interests play in the election infrastructure of both the Republican and Democratic parties. 

Later in the show, we turn to Karyn Strickler, founder and president of Vote Climate U.S. PAC, a political action committee tracking key races in the U.S. House and Senate and ranking candidates based on their climate record. There are 26 days until the contentious 2020 election and climate issues could sway the outcome.

**From now until November 3rd the Political Climate podcast will donate $2 for every new subscriber to the American Red Cross for every new subscription to the show! If you’re already a subscriber, share the podcast with a friend. 

To participate, simply have a new subscriber send a screenshot of their subscription on whichever podcasting platform they like best to politicalclimatepodcast@gmail.com. Or send us a message via Twitter or Instagram @poli_climate. That’s it!**

Recommended reading:

• CNN: New climate group will offer district-specific policy 'menus' to every congressional candidate
• GTM: Virginia Mandates 100% Clean Power by 2045
• Pew Research: How important is climate change to voters in the 2020 election?
• Climate Cabinet: The Divided States Of Climate Action
• Vote Climate U.S. PAC: 2020 Climate Change Voter’s Guide

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden faced off in their first debate this week. To the surprise of many, Fox News moderator Chris Wallace asked the presidential candidates a series of questions on climate change.

Energy and environmental issues got more air time on Tuesday night than at all 2016 presidential debates combined.

On this week's episode of Political Climate, our hosts discuss takeaways from the debate (from snippets in between interruptions). Did Trump shift his tone on climate? Did Biden successfully sell his vision for a clean energy economy?

Later in the show, we address what changes at the Supreme Court could mean for the future of climate policy and discuss prospects for clean energy legislation currently moving through the House and Senate. Plus, we ask: is there an electric vehicle that can accommodate three car seats? And more!

Recommended reading:

• environment-rollbacks.html?smid=tw-nytclimate&smtyp=cur">NYT: The Trump Administration Is Reversing 100 Environmental Rules. Here’s the Full List.
• PolitiFact: Fact-Check: Have Carbon Emissions Increased Under Trump?
• The Hill: House passes sweeping clean energy bill
• NRDC: House Bill Would Deliver Needed Steps Toward a Clean Economy
• GTM: Clean Energy Gets a Surprisingly Big Role in First Presidential Debate

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts! Follow us on Twitter at @Poli_Climate.

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, more Americans worked in clean energy than there were school teachers in the country. The once booming sector is now experiencing hundreds of thousands of job losses as a result of the coronavirus recession. 

What will it take to not only get these jobs back but to grow the clean energy sector beyond where it was at the start of the year, putting the industry at the center of a U.S. economic recovery?

In this episode of Political Climate, we speak to Ellen Hughes-Cromwick, former chief economist for the Obama Administration's Department of Commerce, as well as clean energy business leaders from Florida, Georgia and Pennsylvania to learn how the clean energy sector has been affected by COVID-19 and what it will take to reboot the industry.

This conversation comes as bipartisan clean energy legislation is advancing in both the House and Senate. But prospects for a final bill remain uncertain as Republicans focus on nominating a new Supreme Court Justice following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

This is the third episode in our "Relief, Rescue, Rebuild" series supported by the think tank Third Way. The series theme song was created by @AYMusik.

Recommended reading: 

• Third Way: How Clean Energy Businesses Can Survive and Thrive After COVID-19
• tech.org/news/lacklustre-job-growth-leaves-14-of-us-clean-energy-workforce-unemployed">PV Tech: Lacklustre job growth leaves 14% of US’ clean energy workforce unemployed
• E&E News: Clean energy push caught in congressional chaos
• The Hill: House passes sweeping clean energy bill
• Verge: Democrats unveil new agenda for economic recovery and climate action
• 116-FA14-Wstate-NahmJ-20200923.pdf">A Green Economic Recovery: Global Trends and Lessons for the United States

“Relief, Rescue, Rebuild” episodes will monthly on the Political Climate podcast feed. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Have a moment? Please leave us a review! You can also chat with us on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

“Climate change poses a major risk to the stability of the U.S. financial system and to its ability to sustain the American economy.” That’s the top line takeaway from a landmark new report from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

While the core finding isn’t entirely new, the CFTC report carries weight. “Managing Climate Risk in the U.S. Financial System,” commissioned by a panel of President Trump appointed federal regulators, is the first comprehensive federal government study to focus on the risks climate change presents to Wall Street.

Divya Mankikar is an investment manager at the California Public Employees' Retirement System, or CalPERS, where she works to shed light on integrating environmental, social and governance factors across the roughly 400 billion fund — the largest public pension fund in the U.S. She’s also a member of the subcommittee that authored the recently released CFTC climate risk report.

In this episode, Divya outlines the report’s main findings and details how CalPERS and other large investors are acting on a growing body of climate risk information.

This is the fifth episode in the Political Climate miniseries called DITCHED: fossil fuels, money flows and the greening of finance. Listen and subscribe to Political Climate wherever you get podcasts!

Recommended reading:

• CFTC: Managing Climate Risk in the U.S. Financial System
• investor.com/articles/calpers-tcfd">Responsible Investor: CalPERS says it plans to align with TCFD amid new California climate legislation
• Guardian: Investors that manage US $47tn demand world’s biggest polluters back plan for net-zero emissions
• Guardian: New Zealand minister calls for finance sector to disclose climate crisis risks in world first

Catch all DITCHED episodes in addition to our regular Thursday shows! Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

The youth climate movement has gained enormous momentum over the past few years. While progressive groups tend to be the most well known, conservative youth activists are also expanding their presence in American politics. 

The Republican Party stands to lose an entire generation of voters if it doesn’t embrace a more environmentally friendly agenda. We speak to Benji Backer, founder and president of the American Conservation Coalition, about what he thinks Republicans are getting right and wrong on climate heading into the 2020 election. 

Benji and a group of college-aged friends created The American Conservation Coalition in 2017 with a dream of making environmental issues nonpartisan again. The Republican-leaning group says it’s dedicated to mobilizing young people around climate action and environmental protection through common-sense, market-based and limited-government ideals — even if that means criticizing members of their own party. 

We talk to Benji about what young conservative climate activists want and debate Republicans’ existing track record on climate action.

Recommended reading:

• Electric Election 2020 Road Trip
• Conservative climate group runs pro-environment ads on Fox News
• WaPo: In rare bipartisan climate agreement, senators forge plan to slash use of potent greenhouse gas
• The Atlantic: How a Plan to Save the Power System Disappeared

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

In the face of a mounting climate crisis, financial institutions are reevaluating their relationships with coal, gas and oil. But while the divestment movement is picking up speed, it isn’t on a one way street. 

There is still lots of money flowing into fossil fuels through various public and private channels. At the same time, fossil fuel interests are spending heavily to influence policy that protects their assets and future growth opportunities. 

In this episode, we speak to Leah Stokes, assistant professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara about her research on how fossil fuel companies and electric utilities are slowing the shift away from polluting resources.

This is the fourth episode in the Political Climate miniseries called DITCHED: fossil fuels, money flows and the greening of finance. Listen and subscribe to Political Climate wherever you get podcasts!

Recommended reading:

• Guardian: How the oil industry has spent billions to control the climate change conversation
• Sierra: Bailout: Billions of Dollars of Federal COVID-19 Relief Money Flow to the Oil Industry
• watch.org/news/2020/08/26/big-oil-meet-big-green/%20">E&E: Big Oil, meet Big Green  
• Bloomberg: Utilities Are Slowing Down the Clean Energy Transition
• S&P: Ohio bribery scandal increases scrutiny of how utilities use 'dark money' groups
• for-utility-politics-ratepayers-funding-the-Edison-Electric-Institute.pdf">Energy and Policy Institute: Paying for Utility Politics
• Short Circuiting Policy

Catch all DITCHED episodes in addition to our regular Thursday shows! Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

Financial regulators have a key role to play in addressing the systemic risks presented by climate change. Arguably, it’s part of their mandate to safeguard financial markets and the real economy from disruptive shocks.

Like the COVID-19 pandemic, change change has the potential to wreak havoc on asset valuations and economic stability, as well as the lives and livelihoods of millions of people — particularly if these events are poorly managed. 

We discuss the steps regulators can take to protect against potentially devastating climate-related impacts in this episode of DITCHED, a Political Climate miniseries on fossil fuels, money flows and the greening of finance. What exactly do those regulatory actions look like? Who is responsible for taking them? What is the upshot for fossil fuels use? And how does this play politically?

Steven Rothstein, managing director of the Ceres Accelerator for Sustainable Capital Markets, explains.

Episodes of DITCHED air on Mondays. To catch all of these shows, subscribe to Political Climate wherever you get podcasts!

Recommended reading:

• climate-threat-regulators.html">NYT: Climate Change Poses ‘Systemic Threat’ to the Economy, Big Investors Warn
• Politico: Ottawa seizes Covid-19 opportunity to require climate risk reporting
• Bloomberg: Fed opens door for oil company loans after lobbying campaign
• Ceres: Addressing Climate as a Systemic Risk

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

Is a green recovery within the oil and gas industry a contradiction in terms? Can these fossil fuel firms meaningfully decarbonize their businesses, while creating new jobs in a struggling economy and volatile energy market? We discuss with a panel of experts, including oil and gas giant BP, in this episode of Political Climate.

The oil and gas industry was hit hard by COVID-19, but business was already rocky ahead of the pandemic. Oil and gas companies were under mounting societal pressure to transition away from fossil fuel production and toward clean energy technologies.

Now, as countries seek to stabilize their economies and investors look for environmentally friendly growth opportunities, it’s an open question as to what role oil and gas companies will play in building new, low-carbon lines of business. 

This discussion was originally recorded in late July for a live event hosted by the Atlantic Council and the Center for Houston’s Future, featuring the following speakers:

• Cindy Yeilding, senior vice president at BP America
• Gavin Dillingham, clean energy policy program director at Houston Advanced Research Center
• Alex Dewar, senior director at the Boston Consulting Group’s Center for Energy Impact
• RJ Johnston, managing director for energy, climate, and resources at the Eurasia group

Recommended reading:

• Atlantic Council: Public sector investment opportunities for a green stimulus in oil and gas
• GTM: BP Aims to Build 50GW of Renewables by 2030, Cut Fossil Fuel Output by 40%
• reports-6point7-billion-second-quarter-loss-after-major-write-downs-cuts-dividend.html">CNBC: BP reports second-quarter loss after major write downs, halves dividend
• Political Climate: What the Oil Price War Means for Cleantech

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

Fossil fuel divestment ain’t what it used to be. In a good way, if you ask advocates.

In this episode — the second episode of Political Climate's special DITCHED miniseries — we get further into the weeds on what’s driving the Divest/Invest movement and where it’s going. We cover a lot and connect the dots in an interview with Justin Guay, director of global climate strategy at the Sunrise Project.

Prior to joining Sunrise, Justin managed grant-making and strategy development for global coal campaigns at the ClimateWorks Foundation and Packard Foundation. He also ran the Sierra Club’s International Coal Campaign, with a special focus on international finance.

In this conversation, we discuss how cutting off the flow of capital into fossil fuels has taken on a variety of different forms, as well as lessons learned from coal divestment that could influence a shift away from oil and gas. Justin addresses the tricky question of whether making fossil fuels harder to finance will actually curb demand for these products. We also talk about what a future without fossil fuels would look like, and how it could affect individual workers and even geopolitical relations. And that’s not all. 

We launched the DITCHED miniseries to shed light on the divestment movement, and the growing trend of moving money out of fossil fuels and into more sustainable investments. Episodes air Mondays on Political Climate. Subscribe here!

Recommended reading:

• Foreign Affairs: Coronavirus Bailouts Stoke Climate Change
• 2019.pdf">IEEFA: Over 100 Global Financial Institutions Are Exiting Coal, With More to Come
• GTM: Devil in the Details for World’s Largest Coal Investor
• Reinsurance News: California to conduct first climate-related stress test for re/insurers
• FT: JPMorgan Chase removes former oil boss from lead director role
• World Oil: Chesapeake joins more than 200 other bankrupt U.S. shale producers

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

The Golden State is in a dark place. Power outages in the midst of a historic heatwave were followed by devastating wildfires. All of which comes on top of persistently high COVID-19 case numbers and a once roaring economy now faced with a $54 billion budget shortfall. 

But despite these challenges, there’s reason to believe that California can build back in an economically and environmentally sustainable way, says Tom Steyer, former Democratic presidential candidate, billionaire climate activist and co-chair of California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s economic recovery task force. 

We speak to Tom on this episode of Political Climate, the second episode in our "Relief, Rescue, Rebuild" series, supported by Third Way. We take a look at California and how the most populous state in the nation with ambitious climate goals is crafting its economic recovery plan in the midst of the pandemic, extreme heat and brutal wildfires.

The "Relief, Rescue, Rebuild" series explores what a green recovery from the COVID-19 economic downturn would look like. What kinds of actions will produce the best results in terms of economic growth, improved health, lower emissions and greater resilience?

Recommended reading: 

• Politico: Steyer emerges as Newsom economic point person — and business groups are concerned
• CalMatters: California’s clean-air programs take a hit in new funding squeeze
• E&E News: Biden launches 'climate engagement' council to target voters 
• Third Way: How Clean Energy Businesses Can Survive and Thrive After COVID-19

“Relief, Rescue, Rebuild” episodes will air monthly on the Political Climate podcast feed. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

A decade ago, hopes that world leaders would rally around meaningful policies to combat climate change were at a low. The 2009 United Nations climate conference in Copenhagen had ended with little to show for it and the U.S. failed to pass a major climate bill the following year.

Then in 2011, the first divestment campaigns struck up on college campuses.

In the climate space, divestment is all about shifting capital out of fossil fuels — the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions from human activity worldwide. The concept of divestment isn’t new, but it is gaining momentum. It’s also evolving and expanding into other areas of the financial system.

Meanwhile, there is a separate but related flurry of activity on the invest side of the equation and moving money into socially responsible and environmentally friendly solutions. Divest/Invest.

On this episode of Political Climate — the first in a new miniseries we’re calling DITCHED: fossil fuels, money flows and the greening of finance — host Julia Pyper speaks to Ellen Dorsey, executive director of the Wallace Global Fund, about the origins of the Divest/Invest movement.

The Wallace Global Fund, a private foundation focused on progressive social change, is a founding member of the Divest Invest: Philanthropy, a coalition of more than 170 foundations committed to deploying their investments to address the climate crisis and accelerate the clean energy transition.

Episodes of DITCHED will air Mondays over the next several weeks. Listen and subscribe to Political Climate wherever you get podcasts!

Recommended reading:

• Divest Invest Philanthropy: Five Years After Launch
• to-an-oil-fortune-join-the-divestment-drive.html">NYT: Rockefellers, Heirs to an Oil Fortune, Will Divest Charity of Fossil Fuels
• Guardian: Insurance giant Suncorp to end coverage and finance for oil and gas industry
• fink-blackrock-climate-change.html">NYT: BlackRock CEO Larry Fink: Climate Crisis Will Reshape Finance
• WSJ: Harvard University Board Gains Backers of Fossil Fuel Divestment 
• Tom Steyer and Bill McKibben in GTM: 2030 Is the New 2050: The Oil Industry Begins to Unwind
• BIV: Divestment can’t hold back ocean of demand for oil: analysts

Catch all DITCHED episodes in addition to our regular Thursday shows! Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

You may have seen the headlines about universities ditching their fossil fuel investments. Or perhaps you saw the news that BlackRock, one of the world’s largest financial firms, is getting out of coal and putting climate change at the center of its investment strategy.

Pension funds, insurers, family offices and others are also moving their assets out of the fossil fuel industry and re-assessing the risk these resources present to the planet and their bottom line.

These are all pieces of a growing, global divestment movement, which is the focus of a new Political Climate miniseries we’re calling "Ditched: Fossil fuels, money flows and the greening of finance."

Catch "Ditched" episodes every Monday over the next few weeks, wherever you listen to Political Climate.

Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Texas, home of the U.S. oil and gas industry, has become a clean energy superpower. The state already leads the nation in wind-power generation and solar is booming. Last year, Texas generated more electricity from renewable energy sources than from coal.

Now, as the coronavirus pandemic delivers a blow to the state’s struggling oil and gas industry, wind and solar production remain on a trajectory for continued record growth.

The rise of renewable energy isn’t the only notable change taking place in Texas, the state’s politics appear to be shifting too. Democratic Presidential Candidate Joe Biden is polling very close to President Trump, who swept the state in 2016. 

How did Texas become a clean energy leader? What are the politics behind this rise? And what are the politics in Texas likely to be more broadly going forward? Could a growing green economy turn this red state blue?

Political Climate speaks to Pat Wood, former head of the Texas Public Utility Commission named by Governor George W. Bush and former chairman of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, where he led FERC’s responses to the 2000-2001 California energy crisis and the 2003 Northeastern power blackout. Wood compares the Texas and California energy systems and weighs in on the Golden State's recent blackouts.

Finally, co-hosts Brandon Hurlbut and Shane Skelton make a new election bet.

Recommended reading: 

• Dallas Observer: Texas Produced More Energy from Renewable Sources Than Coal Last Year
• GTM: Texas Is the Center of the Global Corporate Renewable Energy Market
• 51c1-11ea-a88b-3f7f28ddcd07.html">Post and Courier: 51c1-11ea-a88b-3f7f28ddcd07.html">All electricity customers can benefit from competition
• Reuters: As Trump falters, Democrats and Biden eye an elusive prize: Texas
• GTM: California’s Shift From Natural Gas to Solar Is Playing a Role in Rolling Blackouts

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

Tony Seba gets a lot of things right. The world-renowned thought leader, entrepreneur, educator and author accurately predicted the rapid decline in solar photovoltaic costs and lithium ion batteries. He also predicted the collapse of the coal industry and oil prices.

Now, he’s out with a new book, “Rethinking Humanity,” that predicts the 2020s will be “the most disruptive decade in history” — not just in terms of energy technology, but across every major industry in the world today. This disruption will have major implications for policymaking and geopolitics, and civilization as a whole. 

In this episode, we speak to Tony Seba about the emergence of a new world order he calls "The Age of Freedom" that's based on decentralization and resource creation, rather than extraction. We also discuss the collapse of incumbents and the impact this will have on societies around the world, and what policy leaders can do to get out ahead of these changes.

Seba breaks down why technological innovation in the next 10 years will either see the American Dream realized for virtually everyone on the planet in a cheap and sustainable manner, or trigger societal collapse akin to the fall of empires in the past. He argues that the future of humanity depends on what humans decide to do.

Recommended reading:

• Rethinking Humanity
• Vice: How Solar Power Could Slay the Fossil Fuel Empire by 2030

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

There’s been a lot of talk recently about a “green recovery” and “building back better.” But what do these concepts really mean? What are the most compelling ideas being put forward by economists, policymakers, grassroots leaders and other experts? What kinds of actions will produce the best results in terms of economic growth, improved health, lower emissions and greater resilience?

These are questions Political Climate will explore in the coming months in the new podcast series “Relief, Rescue, Rebuild,” sponsored by Third Way. Earlier this year, we launched a series called “Path to Zero,” which explored the technologies and policies needed to rapidly drive down carbon emissions. Now, we’re shifting our focus to the path to economic recovery and what that would look like if equitable, low-carbon solutions were baked in.

In this first episode, we speak to Leah Stokes, assistant professor of political science at the University of California, Santa Barbara and author of the new book Short Circuiting Policy. Leah makes the case for a green economic recovery, barriers to implementation, and what she would put in her ideal green stimulus bill. 

In the second half of the show, we turn to a joint interview with Oni Blair, executive director at LinkHouston, and Alex Laska, transportation policy advisor at Third Way. In this discussion, we focus on clean transportation policy and the need to “fix it first” — both with respect to infrastructure and equity issues — before tackling entirely new projects.

“Relief, Rescue, Rebuild” episodes will air monthly on the Political Climate podcast feed. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Recommended reading:

• Third Way: Building Back Better: Investing in Clean Infrastructure to Drive Economic Recovery
• Equitable Growth: Green stimulus, not dirty bailouts, is the smart investment strategy during the coronavirus recession
• Equitable Growth: Americans want green spending in federal coronavirus recession relief packages
• Utility Dive: Senate Republicans urge McConnell to include efficiency, clean energy in COVID-19 recovery package

The “Relief, Rescue, Rebuild” theme song was created by AY Musik. AY is the founder of Battery Tour, a sustainable music festival and global movement actively bringing renewable energy solutions to people in need around the world. You can hear the original version of this song, “Save the Planet,” on AY’s website or via his instagram @AYMusik.

Few people have more experience working in modern Democratic politics than John Podesta. From Senate staffer to White House chief of staff, progressive think tank founder to presidential environmental policy counselor, campaign manager to climate action advocate — Podesta has seen a lot.

In this exclusive, in-depth interview, we get the veteran Democrat’s perspective on the state of climate politics amid the pandemic and intensifying 2020 election. We hear how he would advise Democratic presidential hopeful Joe Biden to address climate change if elected, including actions a new Biden administration could take within its first 100 days. 

We also discuss why Podesta has beef with Facebook, what he thinks about ending the Senate filibuster, and we get his thoughts on President Trump’s campaign strategy. Plus, Podesta shares his preferred pick for Joe Biden’s running mate.

John Podesta previously served as White House chief of staff to President Bill Clinton. He is the founder of the progressive think tank Center for American Progress and served as counselor to President Barack Obama, where he focused on climate and energy policy. Podesta chaired Hillary Clinton’s campaign for president in 2016. He is currently a member of Climate Power 2020, a campaign created to change the politics of climate.

Recommended reading:

• The Atlantic: The Audacity of John Podesta
• Grist: Climate leftists and moderates have a radical new plan to defeat Trump: Work together
• Mother Jones: Democratic Leaders Want to Know Why Facebook’s New Oversight Board Won’t Deal With Climate Lies
• The Hill: COVID-19 relief and economic recovery must dismantle environmental racism

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

There’s a lot of discussion these days about “building back better” and passing “green economic stimulus.” But what exactly does this entail?

On this bonus episode, we share insights and resources from a group of energy leaders in California. They discuss new ways to think about environmental investments in COVID-19 recovery packages, how the public sector can advance sustainability goals at the local, state, and federal level, and lessons from the 2008 recession that could be adapted to today. 

This discussion was co-hosted by the USC Schwarzenegger Institute and the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation.

Speakers include:

• Fran Pavley, former California State Senator and USC Schwarzenegger Institute Environmental Policy Director
• J. R. DeShazo, Director of the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation
• Bob Keefe, Executive Director of Environmental Entrepreneurs (E2)
• Matt Petersen, President and CEO of the Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator (LACI)

Recommended reading:

• E2: Build Back Better, Faster: How a federal stimulus focusing on clean energy can create millions of jobs and restart America’s economy
• Newsom-s-environmental-budget-cuts-15302039.php%20">SF Chronicle: Newsom’s environmental budget cuts escalate tensions with state activists
• UCLA: Employment Benefits from California Climate Investments and Co-investments
• Carbon Brief: Leading economists: Green coronavirus recovery also better for economy
• LACI: Keeping America Working, Protecting Public Health, and Strengthening our Communities

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

Joe Biden has just released the details of his $2 trillion plan to combat climate change, firming up a key pillar of his platform heading into the 2020 election. The proposal is being pitched as a way to boost the American economy, create millions of jobs and “build back better” coming out of today’s profound public health and economic emergencies.

The Biden climate plan comes on the heels of the Biden-Sanders Unity Task Force recommendations on addressing climate change and environmental injustice, as well as House Democrats’ 500-page report on solving the climate crisis.

We break down key elements of these proposals on this episode of Political Climate. Resident Democratic co-host Brandon Hurlbut, co-founder of Boundary Stone Partners and former chief of staff at the US Department of Energy, and Republican co-host Shane Skelton, co-founder of S2C Pacific and former policy advisor to House Speaker Paul Ryan, discuss the details and political implications of Biden’s climate plan.

A key feature of the proposal is to achieve net-zero carbon emissions in the electricity sector by 2035. We also take a look at recent industry-led progress toward that goal. Plus, we discuss the House-passed “Moving Forward Act,” a comprehensive surface transportation bill that aligns closely with the Biden platform.

In theory, there’s a lot in all of these proposals for leaders across the political aisle to love.

Recommended Reading

• GTM: Biden Pledges $2T in Clean Energy and Infrastructure Spending
• Resources Magazine: A Close Look at the New Report from the House Select Committee on the Climate Crisis
• GTM: Can the Clean Energy Industry Deliver on the Biden-Sanders Climate Plan?
• GTM: Finding Bipartisan Opportunities in House Democrats’ Climate Plan
• Forbes: Moving Forward Act Is A $1.5 Trillion Congressional Bill That Loves Electric Vehicles

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Lyft. Lyft is leading the transition to zero emissions vehicles with a commitment to achieve 100% electric vehicles on the Lyft platform by 2030. Learn more at lyftimpact.com/electric.

In a series of major wins for the environmental community, three multibillion-dollar pipeline projects — the Dakota Access Pipeline, the Keystone XL Pipeline and the Atlantic Coast Pipeline — were recently delivered devastating setbacks. 

The business and legal decisions undermine President Trump’s multiyear effort to ease environmental regulations and expand oil and gas development in the U.S. Meanwhile, the Biden-Sanders Unity Task Force has released its roadmap on combating the climate crisis that calls for immediate action “to reverse the Trump Administration’s dangerous and destructive rollbacks of critical climate and environmental protections.”

On this week’s episode of Political Climate, we dig deeper into the pipeline project defeats and their implications for the energy sector in an interview with Steven Mufson, renowned reporter covering the business of climate change for The Washington Post. 

We discuss the environmental movement’s strategy and recent success in the courtroom, against the backdrop of President Trump’s deregulation agenda. Plus, we address how these developments are playing politically ahead of the 2020 election.

Steven Mufson joined the Washington Post in 1989. This year, he shared the Pulitzer Prize for the climate change series "2C: Beyond the Limit." He’s also the author of “Keystone XL: Down the Line.”

Recommended reading:

• WaPo: Major oil and gas pipeline projects, backed by Trump, flounder as opponents prevail in court
• GTM: As Fossil Fuel Pipelines Fall to Opposition, Utilities See Renewable Energy as Safe Bet
• WaPo: Citing an economic emergency, Trump directs agencies across government to waive federal regulations
• TASK-FORCE-RECOMMENDATIONS.pdf">Biden-Sanders Unity Task Force Recommendations

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Have a moment? Please leave us a review! Find us on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

There’s more political momentum than ever around achieving net zero emissions by 2050, especially following the release of House Democrats’ new Congressional Action Plan for a Clean Energy Economy. 

But where do we currently stand on that trajectory? And is the path to zero as inclusive as it should be?

On this episode, the last in our monthly “Path to Zero” series supported by the public policy think tank Third Way, we talk climate targets and what it’s going to take to meet them. 

To bookend the series, we speak to Josh Freed, the founder and leader of Third Way’s climate and energy program, to get a read on progress toward carbon neutrality in America amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and renewed calls to combat racial injustices.

Then in the second half of the show, we speak to Nathaniel Smith, founder of the Partnership for Southern Equity, an organization working to advance racial equality and shared prosperity in Atlanta and across the South, about making the low-carbon economy inclusive of Black communities.

We look at what policymakers are getting right and getting wrong. And we end by discussing what Black voters want to see from candidates in 2020. Hint: R-E-S-P-E-C-T.

Recommended reading:

• GTM: House Democrats Spell Out Climate, Clean Energy Priorities in Sweeping Plan
• WaPo: Most Americans believe the government should do more to combat climate change, poll finds
• Path to Zero

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.

“Path to Zero” is created in partnership with the public policy think tank Third Way. Episodes air monthly on the Political Climate podcast feed. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

There aren’t many sporting events taking place amid the pandemic, but athletes and the brands that support them aren’t sitting idle. 

Protect Our Winters, a non-profit representing the outdoor sports community on climate issues, recently spent a week virtually lobbying Congress for bolder climate action and environmental protections.  

Professional snowboarder and two-time X-Games gold medalist Danny Davis was among the participants in POW’s advocacy week. Steve Fechheimer, CEO of New Belgium Brewing, also took part.

Sports have always been political to some degree. But these days, athletes, teams and entire sporting organizations are choosing to get off the sidelines and take a more active role in public policy.

On this show, we speak to Danny and Steve about why they decided to be more outspoken on climate issues, about leadership and corporate responsibility, and about how sports and beer are intertwined with one of the biggest challenges of our time.

Recommended reading:

• CNN: Climate change is threatening winter sports' very existence
• Wired: Don't Save the Planet for the Planet. Do It for the Beer
• Protect Our Winters: Policy Agenda

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Have a moment? Please leave us a review! Chat with us on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

Lyft is going 100% electric. The rideshare company just pledged to transition every vehicle on its platform to an EV by 2030.

But this decision isn’t as simple as buying a few new cars. It will require building out an entire ecosystem of electric vehicle infrastructure and incentives, and getting into the weeds on policy. On this episode, we speak to Lyft’s director of sustainability, Sam Arons, about this bold new strategy.

We talk to Sam about the EV target and how to meet it, as well as related policies and how electric rideshare vehicles can support the power grid. We also talk a lot about the broader transportation ecosystem, the future of cities, and Lyft’s evolving role as a “multimodal technology platform,” as Sam put it.

Lyft's announcement also speaks to how companies are looking to play a bigger role in the fight against climate change, in an era of increasing public pressure for greater corporate responsibility.

Learn more about Lyft's sustainability strategy in this exclusive, in-depth interview. And while you're listening, we'd love you to give Political Climate an Apple Podcasts review! Your 5-star ratings help us grow and bring this content to wider audiences. Thank you!

Recommended reading:

• Lyft: Leading the Transition to Zero Emissions: Our Commitment to 100% Electric Vehicles by 2030
• GTM: Lyft Pledges Shift to 100% Electric Vehicles by 2030 
• LA Times: Taking an Uber or Lyft pollutes more than driving, California finds. Next stop: Regulations
• GTM: Electric Ridesharing Benefits the Grid, and EVgo Has the Data to Prove It

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Find us on Twitter @Poli_Climate.

Deep-seated racial justice issues have been brought to the fore in recent weeks by a series of nationwide protests over police violence. These protests are taking place in the midst of a global pandemic, which has exposed, and in many cases worsened, long-standing issues of racial inequality. 

The energy and climate space is not immune to racial discrimination. But some politicians have questioned whether this is the right moment to talk about issues such as pollution, calling it a misplaced political move.

Mustafa Santiago Ali has been on the frontlines of the fight for environmental justice since he was a teenager and throughout his 24 years at the EPA. Now, as vice president of environmental justice, climate and community revitalization for the the National Wildlife Federation, Ali says he’s hopeful this historic moment will accelerate equitable energy solutions.

On this episode, Ali connects the dots between the clean air, affordable energy and the racial justice movement. We also discuss the implications of recent environmental rollbacks by the Trump Administration and take a hard look at how the clean energy industry can promote greater diversity. 

Plus, we discuss Republican approaches to combatting inequality, teeing off of comments made by Representatives John Shimkus (R-Illinois) and David McKinley (R-West Virginia) at this week’s House Energy and Commerce Committee hearing on the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on frontline communities — where Ali testified.

Recommended reading:

• The Hill: Trump's latest environmental rollback threatens minority communities, experts warn
• Politico: California lawmakers rebuke top regulator who invoked 'I can't breathe' in air quality fight
• HuffPost: Solar Power Has A Diversity Problem
• GTM: ‘We Too Must Improve’: Clean Energy Industry Looks Into Mirror on Racial Inequity
• Political Climate: Fighting Energy Injustice and Coronavirus in African American Communities

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Democrats are beginning to rally around a progressive, three-part climate platform that prioritizes environmental justice. But will Joe Biden fully embrace it? If so, could it sway the 2020 election? Or will few voters care in this turbulent year?

On this episode of Political Climate, we speak to Maggie Thomas, political director at Evergreen Action, a new group created by former Jay Inslee campaign staffers to promote a comprehensive climate plan for Democrats.

We discuss how the left came to unite around the concept of pursuing rapid decarbonization through sector-specific standards, large-scale public investments, and a commitment to justice and equity (as Vox's David Roberts first reported). We also learn how Thomas and her colleagues crafted Inslee’s environmental justice plan — a plan that’s all the more relevant in light of recent protests. 

Plus, we get a read on the most politically attractive elements of the crystalizing climate platform. Are there policies that progressive Bernie Sanders supporters, moderate Biden fans and perhaps even some Republicans could support?

Recommended reading:

• Evergreen Action Plan
• Vox: At last, a climate policy platform that can unite the left
• Vox: Joe Biden has a chance to make history on climate change
• Medium: A Week of Podcasts for the Advocate New to Climate Justice
• WaPo: I’m a black climate expert. Racism derails our efforts to save the planet.

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is also supported by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. The EarthxOcean virtual event takes place June 9-June 11. Tune in to learn about protecting ocean life support systems. Register at www.earthx.org/earthxocean.

Buckle up. Electric vehicle sales are expected to take a big hit this year amid the current health and economic crisis. Industry analysts say the long-term prospects for EVs remain strong, but the jury’s still out on how quickly the market will rebound.  

The EV market outlook could have a major impact on the U.S. economy overall. Boosting government investment in clean transportation is being championed by advocates and several lawmakers as a way to put Americans back to work and build out of the coronavirus downturn. The EV growth trajectory will also have a direct impact on whether or not the U.S. will be able to achieve the goal of net zero emissions by 2050.

In the sixth episode of Political Climate's monthly “Path to Zero” series, supported by the public policy think tank Third Way, we discuss what it will take to decarbonize the transportation sector, with a focus on accelerating the adoption of electric vehicles. 

We speak to Democratic Congresswoman Debbie Dingell, representative for Michigan's 12th congressional district, about what it will take to reboot the American automotive industry and get the U.S. EV market back on track coming out of the economic recession.

We also speak to James “Jim” Chen, vice president of public policy at the high-profile electric vehicle startup Rivian. The Detroit-based company set out on a mission to “keep the world adventurous” by building rugged, long-range, high-performance electric trucks and SUVs. Rivian’s R1T and R1S have generated a lot of fanfare (and raised a lot of money). But are electric adventure vehicles really going to make a dent in reducing transportation emissions?

Plus, Political Climate co-host Brandon Hurlbut describes what he likes about driving electric and the killer deal he got on his EV purchases. 

Recommended reading:

• Detroit News: Rep. Dingell aims to jump-start Washington electric-vehicle debate
• Politico: The One-Woman Campaign to Get Michigan Back for the Dems
• Verge: Rivian races ahead of other EV startups with $1.3 billion in new funding
• vehicle-companies-surviving-9aea6bf9-e82a-4e37-b62a-0da1c0d3e957.html">Axios: These electric vehicle companies have the best shot at surviving
• GTM: 4 Takeaways From Amazon’s Huge Electric Delivery Van Order

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.

“Path to Zero” is created in partnership with the public policy think tank Third Way. Episodes air monthly on the Political Climate podcast feed. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

The skies may look clearer these days. But don’t get too excited. Levels of smog and other short-lived climate pollutants (remember HFCs?) are still high and climbing.

The good news: there’s a long track record of international cooperation to get these harmful pollutants in check. The challenge: finding the political will to eliminate them entirely.

Short-lived climate pollutants include black carbon or soot, methane, hydrofluorocarbons and tropospheric ozone, or what we think of as city smog. In addition to heating up the atmosphere, they dirty our air, make people sick and affect the ozone layer.

In this episode, we speak to legendary environmental litigator, professor, author and advocate Durwood Zaelke about why the world needs to prioritize non-carbon dioxide greenhouse gases and what’s being done to curb them (with support from both sides of the political aisle).

Zaelke is the founder and President of the Institute for Governance & Sustainable Development in Washington, DC and Paris, where he focuses on fast mitigation strategies to protect the climate. He’s received numerous awards for his work on the Montreal Protocol and his efforts to enact the Kigali Amendment to phasedown HFCs for climate protection.

Recommended reading:

• NPR: Traffic Is Way Down Because Of Lockdown, But Air Pollution? Not So Much
• The Hill: Trump drags feet on climate treaty, and Republicans aren’t happy
• The Guardian: Study finds shock rise in levels of potent greenhouse gas
• Short-Lived Climate Pollutants

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Eavor, the first truly scalable form of clean baseload power. Learn more at eavor.com.

This episode is also supported by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. The EarthxOcean virtual event takes place June 9-June 11. Tune in to learn about protecting ocean life support systems. Register at www.earthx.org/earthxocean.

Late last year, the European Union introduced a $1 trillion plan to reach carbon neutrality by 2050 and achieve a just transition away from polluting technologies.

Europe’s Green Deal enjoys strong backing from many of the EU’s top political figures. But it faces pushback from coal-heavy member states. Implementation of the Green Deal has now been further complicated by the urgent need for governments to respond to the coronavirus pandemic.

On this episode, we bring you a conversation with EU Ambassador to the U.S. Stavros Lambrinidis about the implications of COVID-19 for Europe’s energy and climate agenda.

Not only that — we also discuss the fallout from plummeting oil prices, what to do with stranded fossil fuel assets, the outlook for a U.S. green recovery plan, and corporate clean energy commitments amid coronavirus with a stellar panel of experts from Google, The Aspen Institute and elsewhere. This episode you'll also hear from:

• Nikos Tsafos, senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies
• Kevin Book, managing director of research at Clearview Energy Partners
• Marsden Hanna, head of sustainability and climate policy for the government affairs team at Google
• Greg Gershuny, executive director of the Aspen Institute's energy and environment program

Political Climate host Julia Pyper moderates this conversation, which originally took place as a virtual event hosted by the EU Delegation to the U.S.

Recommended reading:

• GTM: Moonshot Moment: Europe Announces Green Deal
• GTM: EU Green Deal Should Be Canceled Because of Coronavirus, Czech PM Says
• Euractiv: EU leaders back ‘green transition’ in pandemic recovery plan
• Virtual event: How COVID-19 affects the climate and energy agenda

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you with support from Eavor, the first truly scalable form of clean baseload power. Learn more at eavor.com.

Are progressive ideas on how to tackle climate change a political poison pill? New opinion polling challenges this commonly held assumption.

On this week's episode of Political Climate, we discuss how data is helping decode where the American public stands on progressive issues with Julian Brave NoiseCat, vice president of policy and strategy at the left-wing think tank Data for Progress.

We dig into new polling on the Green New Deal and passing a green stimulus bill in response to COVID-19. We also look at public views on nationalizing the U.S. oil and gas industry and potential Democratic picks for vice president.

Plus, Julian puts a question to co-host Shane Skelton about the Republican response to climate change. As always, we end with our segment “Say Something Nice.”

Recommended reading:

• Politico: What AOC Gets that Bernie Didn’t
• Data for Progress: Voters Want a Green Stimulus
• Data for Progress: The Coronavirus Pandemic Has Made Voters More Supportive of the Green New Deal
• Data for Progress: Nationalize the Fossil Fuel Industry
• No Place Like Home

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Find us on Twitter @Poli_Climate! Tweet at our hosts at @JMPyper @BrandonHurlbut @ShaneSkelton.

Listen and subscribe to Political Climate on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

African Americans are struggling with a disproportionate death toll from COVID-19 and severe financial strain from the economic downturn. This crisis has exposed preexisting racial disparities created by deep-seated social, economic and political factors. 

These same underlying issues make African Americans more vulnerable to health damage from pollution, as well as from heat waves, storms and other effects of climate change. 

Meanwhile, African Americans are missing out on wealth creation opportunities in the clean energy economy, which could be an effective solution to some of these underlying issues — bringing jobs and environmental benefits to communities that need it the most.

In this episode of Political Climate, the fifth in our "Path to Zero" series with Third Way, we look at how COVID-19 and climate change are affecting Black communities, and how these issues can be tackled in tandem. 

We speak to Jared DeWese and Akunna Cook at Third Way about the multiple crises facing Black Americans today. We also hear from Naomi Davis, a grassroots leader and green village builder in Chicago’s Southside, who succeeded in shaping a landmark clean energy bill in Illinois. 

Finally, we speak to Tony Reames, assistant professor at the University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability, about the issue of “energy injustice.” We also discuss takeaways from preliminary research on how African Americans are thinking about climate and energy issues in 2020.

Recommended reading:

• National Geographic: African Americans struggle with disproportionate COVID death toll
• pollution-coronavirus-covid.html">NYT: New Research Links Air Pollution to Higher Coronavirus Death Rates
• Quartz: The overwhelming whiteness of US environmentalism is hobbling the fight against climate change
• ISEA: Future Energy Jobs Act Workforce Development Programs
• HuffPost: Solar Power Has A Diversity Problem

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.

“Path to Zero” is created in partnership with the public policy think tank Third Way. Episodes air monthly on the Political Climate podcast feed. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

John Kerry isn’t pleased. 

As the world celebrates the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, the former senator and secretary of state says a profound lack of leadership is causing the United States to fall behind on climate action and clean energy innovation.

In this episode of Political Climate, we speak to Secretary Kerry about his outlook on combatting climate change. We get his views on abolishing the Senate filibuster, decarbonizing the power grid, the future role of fossil fuels, American leadership (or lack thereof) on the international stage, and more.

We also get an update on Kerry’s World War Zero coalition. The initiative was launched last year with a high-profile cast of founding members to mobilize mass action to combat the climate crisis. The coalition's main goal is to host more than ten million “climate conversations” in 2020 with citizens from across the political spectrum. Has the star-studded effort been successful so far?

Finally, we turn to a brief interview with Tia Nelson, environmental leader, climate program director at the Outrider Foundation and daughter of former Senator and Governor Gaylord Nelson, the founder of Earth Day.

Nelson was 13 years old on April 22, 1970 — the first Earth Day ever. We get her thoughts on how the environmental movement has evolved over time. 

Recommended reading:

• WaPo: John Kerry: Why I’m an optimist this Earth Day
• WBNS: Arnold Schwarzenegger, John Kerry, John Kasich hold town hall on climate change at Otterbein
• Heated: A conversation with John Kerry
• Isthmus: Earth Day turns 50
• When the Earth Moves Film

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. The Earthx2020 Conference and Film Festival is being held virtually from April 22-27 to mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Find more information at www.earthx.org!

The 2020 election is crawling forward amid the coronavirus pandemic. Former Vice President Joe Biden has become the presumptive nominee for the Democratic Party, with Senator Bernie Sanders announcing his withdrawal from the race.

With the primary settled, the next question is: can Biden win over Bernie’s climate supporters? And how much do these supporters matter?

Speaking of support, clean energy stakeholders say they're in dire need of government help. Industry researchers project that the clean energy sector could lose more than a half million jobs — or 15 percent of its total workforce — in the coming months if no additional policy actions are taken by Congress.

More than 106,000 workers already lost their jobs in the month of March alone, according to a new analysis by Environmental Entrepreneurs, the American Council on Renewable Energy, E4TheFuture and BW Research. In light of these numbers, will a Republican-led Senate step in to save the clean energy workforce?

We discuss on this week’s episode of Political Climate.

Recommended reading:

• biden-bernie-sanders-climate-change-endorsement-139d348d-978b-409b-9559-1e68bc72a809.html">Axios: Biden and Sanders vow joint climate work as part of endorsement
• progressives-joe-biden.html">NYT: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Has Never Spoken to Joe Biden. Here’s What She Would Say
• GTM: Virginia Mandates 100% Clean Power by 2045
• The Atlantic: Coronavirus Killed the Policy Primary
• E2: 106,000 Jobs in Clean Energy Lost in March Due to COVID-19 Economic Crisis

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. The Earthx2020 Conference and Film Festival will be held virtually from April 22-27 to mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Find more information at www.earthx.org!

The coronavirus outbreak continues to loom large over the world. Across the globe, countries face major challenges as consumer demand contracts, employee payroll is cut, and capital shrinks as billions of people remain in quarantine. 

The combination of an economic downturn, cheap oil and gas, and global supply chain disruptions will have big consequences for clean energy markets and climate action in the U.S and abroad. But is it all bad news?

In this episode, we bring you a conversation on the implications of COVID-19 for climate and clean energy with four expert voices. Drawing on data and experience, speakers weigh in on the future of sustainable finance, low-carbon technology deployment, and government stimulus efforts.

This discussion was recorded earlier in the week at virtual event presented by the Atlantic Council's Global Energy Center and moderated by podcast host Julia Pyper.

Joining her this episode are:

• Ethan Zindler, Head of Americas at Bloomberg New Energy Finance
• Rachel Kyte, former CEO and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All and Dean of The Fletcher School at Tufts University
• Rich Powell, executive director of the ClearPath Foundation
• Adnan Amin, former Director-General of the International Renewable Energy Agency and Distinguished Fellow and the Atlantic Council's Global Energy Center

Recommended reading:

• GTM: Coronavirus Derailed COP26 Talks, But Not Europe’s Appetite for Climate Action
• Vox: How the Covid-19 recession could become a depression
• CNN: Here's what America's oil CEOs discussed with Trump
• Atlantic Council: COVID-19: Clean energy and climate impacts

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. The Earthx2020 Conference and Film Festival will be held virtually from April 22-27 to mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Find more information at www.earthx.org!

Climate change didn’t stop while the world turned its attention to combating the coronavirus. Will leaders seize the moment to tackle more than one crisis?

The $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act offered no explicit support for the energy sector. Will Congress use the next stimulus bill to accelerate the green economy as part of the COVID-19 recovery? If so, when and how? Or will climate friendly stimulus measures fall by the wayside for now?

Plus, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced it will allow companies to break pollution laws during the pandemic and did not set a timeline to start implementing the laws again. We discuss how this compares to the crisis response of past administrations.. 

We end with some tips on how to weather through COVID-19 and related economic troubles, including a breakdown of the financial support available to cleantech startups under the recently passed CARES Act.

Recommended reading:

• E&E News: Does climate change still matter in the election?
• The Guardian: Trump administration allows companies to break pollution laws during coronavirus pandemic
• Medium: A Green Stimulus to Rebuild Our Economy
• Wired: The Analogy Between Covid-19 and Climate Change Is Eerily Precise
• The Guardian: Polar ice caps melting six times faster than in 1990s

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. The Earthx2020 Conference and Film Festival will be held virtually from April 22-27 to mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Find more information at www.earthx.org!

Labor groups and environmentalists have a complicated relationship.

Efforts to mitigate climate change stand to create new employment opportunities in a thriving, low-carbon economy. But they also stand to eliminate many unionized jobs, particularly in the fossil fuel industry.

So how can organized labor and the environmental movement work together to promote a just and sustainable society? We discuss in a candid conversation with Lee Anderson, director of government affairs at the Utility Workers Union of America, and Anna Fendley, director of regulatory and state policy at the United Steelworkers.

We also explore how policymakers can support blue collar workers and expand job prospects, while dramatically cutting down carbon emissions. Does the prospect of another economic stimulus bill in response to COVID-19 present an opportunity to accelerate America's blue-green economy?

This is the fourth episode of Political Climate’s monthly “Path to Zero” series, brought to you by the public policy think tank Third Way. The series explore how people are being affected by the transition to cleaner energy resources, and the economic challenges and opportunities created in the process. It examines the technologies and policies we will need to implement to drive down carbon emissions, and the politics driving this dialogue. Listen and subscribe to all “Path to Zero” episodes here!

Recommended reading:

• for-Climate-Action-vFINAL.pdf">Solidarity for Climate Action
• Politico: Energy Issues in Stimulus Limbo
• A Green Stimulus to Rebuild Our Economy

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.

“Path to Zero” is created in partnership with the public policy think tank Third Way. Episodes air monthly on the Political Climate podcast feed. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

With cases recorded in more than 140 countries, the novel coronavirus has become a global health crisis. 

In the U.S., bars and offices have been closed, conferences cancelled and kids kept home from school in an attempt to slow the spread. President Trump has declared a national emergency and invoked the Defense Production Act to accelerate the virus response.

So why aren’t we reacting as swiftly to climate change -- another human-propelled global catastrophe that could harm human health and wellbeing for generations to come?

These threats are not the same, but they do share certain attributes. We discuss with risk and behavioral scientist Sweta Chakraborty, founder of Adapt to Thrive and co-host the live weekly radio show “Risky Behavior.”

Recommended reading:

• NBC: Me, worry? For coronavirus, it depends on your politics
• GTM: For Wind and Solar Sectors, Biggest Coronavirus Risk May Be a Damaged Economy
• GreenBiz: COVID-19 and climate change: A healthy dose of reality
• London Real: Jonathan Haidt - Climate Change Ideology

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. Looking for a new activity? Challenge yourself to take on the 50 for 50 Challenge — 5 Pledges x 10 Actions = 50 Ways to Protect our Planet in honor of Earth Day's 50th anniversary. Sign up at www.earthx.org!

It's been pretty hard to miss the latest news. Coronavirus spreads! Oil prices plummet! Stock market crashes!

What does all of this have to do with climate and clean energy? A lot, actually.

On Monday, oil prices had their worst day since the 1991 Gulf War, falling 24 percent to around $34 per barrel. So how did we get here? And what does the combination of rock bottom oil prices and the coronavirus mean for clean energy?

We break it down on this episode of Political Climate in an interview with David Livingston, senior analyst at the political risk consultancy Eurasia Group with a focus on energy and global macroeconomics.

Recommended reading:

• E&E News: EVs, shale and Trump: 5 takeaways from the oil crash
• WaPo: White House likely to pursue federal aid for shale companies hit by oil shock, coronavirus downturn
• GTM: Coronavirus May Challenge Solar Industry’s Tax Credit Strategy

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. This April marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and there’s no better way to celebrate than at the EarthX Expo, Conference and Film Festival in Dallas, Texas. This event is for everyone, including you! Visit earthx.org to learn more and register.

Joe Biden had a super, Super Tuesday. We discuss the results and what they mean for climate in the 2020 Democratic Primary. We also touch on the sweeping Senate energy bill that could come to a vote any day now.

Plus, there was another big winner this week! We share the results of our policy bracket competition from last week’s Decarb Madness episode.

In the latter half of this show (26 min), we discuss how to pick the best policies for decarbonizing the U.S. economy with experts at the think tank Energy Innovation who created the policy simulator we used to evaluate last week’s policy brackets.

If you haven’t heard the Decarb Madness episode yet, we recommend going back to give it a listen.

Recommended reading:

• WaPo: Sweeping Senate Energy Bill Could Come to a Vote This Week
• GTM: Sweeping Senate Energy Bill Could Come to a Vote This Week
• Energy Innovation: A Policy Pathway To Reach U.S. Net Zero Emissions By 2050
• Decarb Madness: How Would You Build a Policy Bracket to Decarbonize the Power Sector?

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. This April marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and there’s no better way to celebrate than at the EarthX Expo, Conference and Film Festival in Dallas, Texas. This event is for everyone, including you! Visit earthx.org to learn more and register.

Welcome to Decarb Madness! The policy bracket game for energy wonks who don’t want to play with our future. 

With March Madness just around the corner and a climate crisis closing in, Political Climate challenged four energy experts to build their ideal policy bracket for decarbonizing the electricity sector.

For the third episode in our “Path to Zero” series, contestants were asked to select five federal-level policies that they think will win the day — both in terms of carbon reductions in 2050 and political feasibility.

Decarb Madness 2020 features Jesse Jenkins, assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering Princeton University, and Leah Stokes, assistant professor of political science at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Political Climate co-hosts Brandon Hurlbut and Shane Skelton also gave it a shot.  

In round one, each player explains why they made their respective policy picks. Following that, host/referee Julia Pyper steps in to explain how each bracket ranks on emissions reductions using the Energy Policy Simulator, a computer model developed by the nonpartisan climate policy firm Energy Innovation.

In round two, each contestant makes the case for why their policy bracket is the most politically and technologically feasible. And then you come in! As soon as you hear this episode, head over to the Political Climate Twitter page @poli_climate and vote for whose bracket you think is the best. We will announce the winner on our next show.

Game on.

Recommended reading:

• Policy list
• Jesse's policy bracket
• Leah's policy bracket
• Brandon's policy bracket
• Shane's policy bracket

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.

“Path to Zero” is created in partnership with the public policy think tank Third Way. Episodes air monthly on the Political Climate podcast feed. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Is the United States positioned to lead long-term as the global energy mix continues to shift?

Fossil fuels have shaped the geopolitical map over the last two centuries. Now, the rapid deployment of renewables has set in motion a global energy transition that could have profound geopolitical consequences.

In this episode of Political Climate, we speak to Daniel Simmons, assistant secretary for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, about how the U.S. Energy Department is thinking about intersection of geopolitics and cleantech.

We also discussed the DOE’s new Energy Storage Grand Challenge and how the agency is deploying capital to support clean energy innovation more broadly under President Trump — and how the DOE is defining “clean energy innovation” under President Trump.

Plus, we hear from Matt Myers, vice president of EarthxCapital. He’s just launched a new, bipartisan initiative with the DOE’s Office of Technology Transitions to address commercialization barriers for cleantech solutions. We’ll learn more about it. 

Finally, the Political Climate crew couldn’t ignore the latest news. So we also touch on this week’s fiery Democratic debate and Jeff Bezos’ new $10 billion commitment to fund climate action. 

Recommended reading:

• Washington Examiner: Bloomberg: US can't afford to ban fracking 'for awhile'
• GTM: What Would It Take for the US to Become an Energy Storage Manufacturing Powerhouse?
• wpengine.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/Bridging-the-U.S.-Environmental-Technology-Gaps-to-Market.pdf">Report: Bridging the U.S. Environmental Technology Gaps to Market

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.

Listen and subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play, Overcast or any of these other services. Find us on Twitter @Poli_Climate! Follow our hosts at @JMPyper @ShaneSkelton and @BrandonHurlbut.

This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. This April marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and there’s no better way to celebrate than at the EarthX Expo, Conference and Film Festival in Dallas, Texas. This event is for everyone, including you! Visit earthx.org to learn more and register.

We’re off to the races! The Democratic primary started slow off the blocks in Iowa, but the nomination process is now well underway following the New Hampshire vote.

What have we learned so far in this election? Where have we seen climate and energy play in? And what’s to come next?

On this week’s episode of Political Climate, we discuss the latest developments in arguably the most consequential ⁠— or at least the most contentious ⁠— election in U.S. history. Plus we touch on a handful of energy policy updates.

Recommended reading:

• The Nation: Climate Is on the Ballot in New Hampshire
• GTM: Time to Reinvent BP, Says New CEO
• democrats-fracking.html">NYT: In Crucial Pennsylvania, Democrats Worry a Fracking Ban Could Sink Them
• Earther: The Trump Administration Is Withholding Almost $1 Billion in Renewable Energy Funding

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.

Listen and subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play, Overcast or any of these other services. Find us on Twitter @Poli_Climate! Follow our hosts at @JMPyper @ShaneSkelton and @BrandonHurlbut.

This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. This April marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and there’s no better way to celebrate than at the EarthX Expo, Conference and Film Festival in Dallas, Texas. This event is for everyone, including you! Visit earthx.org to learn more and register.

What the heck happened in Iowa? Democratic co-host Brandon Hurlbut shares a first-hand account of the caucus reporting glitch and top voter issues in the first state to hold a presidential nominating contest. We look at where climate ranked.

Meanwhile in the capitol, House Democrats have unveiled draft legislation and policy roadmap to reach net zero emissions by 2050. Is this the kind of bold climate leadership that advocates have been calling for? And are there proposals in the CLEAN Future Act that Republicans could back? Co-host Shane Skelton argues that there are.

Not to be left out, House Republicans are floating their own climate plan that focuses on planting trees, removing plastic pollution and funding clean energy innovation. But is it the kind of innovation that the planet needs or is it a smokescreen? A good first step or pure optics?

We discuss what innovation means to Republicans and where there's common ground with Democrats on this week's episode of Political Climate!

Recommended reading:

• WaPo: Climate change among top concerns for Iowa Democratic caucus-goers
• NPR: Iowa Farmer Says He's Disenchanted With President Trump
• E&C: E&C Leaders Release Draft CLEAN Future Act
• change-house-republicans-trees-plastic-3a6a5695-2f92-4173-8693-800500bef500.html?utm_source=Third+Way+Subscribers&utm_campaign=b58e30ab0b-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2020_01_22_03_15&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_8952c391fb-b58e30ab0b-228896045">Axios: What’s in Republicans’ new climate-change push
• Vox: “Innovation”: the latest GOP smokescreen on climate change policy
• NRDC: Promising Bipartisan Movement

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.

Listen and subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play, Overcast or any of these other services.

Find us on Twitter @Poli_Climate! Follow our hosts at @JMPyper @ShaneSkelton and @BrandonHurlbut.

Science tells us we must reach net zero emissions by 2050 to stave off the most devastating impacts of climate change. But do we have all of the technologies we need to do it?

In the second episode of Political Climate's “Path to Zero” series, we put that question to physicist, professor, Nobel Laureate, and former U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu.

Under his leadership, the DOE launched several new initiatives to help put the United States at the forefront of cleantech development, including the creation of Energy Innovation Hubs and the Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy, or ARPA-E. Chu also oversaw $90 billion in Recovery Act funding for strategic clean energy investments.

Together these measures helped jumpstart America’s modern green economy. But what now? Do we have what we need to reach net zero?

Find out in this episode of “Path to Zero” series, presented with support from Third Way — a leading public policy think tank based in Washington, DC that champions thoughtful and data-driven climate solutions to put the United States on the fastest and fairest path to net-zero emissions by 2050.

“Path to Zero” episodes will air monthly on the Political Climate podcast feed. Episode one "The Urgency of Reaching Net Zero" is available here. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Recommended reading:

• The Atlantic: The 'Silent Green Revolution' Underway at the Department of Energy
• The Onion: Hungover Energy Secretary Wakes Up Next To Solar Panel

Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.

Listen and subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play, Overcast or any of these other services.