Decoding Climate Polls with Data for Progress

Danielle Deiseroth is the Executive Director of Data for Progress. Data for Progress produces polling, database messaging, and policy generation for progressive causes, campaigns and candidates. Danielle joined in 2020 and built the climate and environmental polling practice. She became interim executive director in December 2022 and was named executive director in June 2023.

We have a robust conversation on what polling is and how it works, and then we dive into what polls are revealing about climate change from a messaging perspective and from a policy perspective. Cody and Danielle touch on trigger words in climate messaging and talk about popular policies related to climate change and policies that still concern folks. Spoiler alert: range anxiety with EVs is still very real. Lastly, we talk about some focus group work that Data for Progress recently conducted to get local insights from community members in a handful of geographies that are being considered for the Department of Energy's direct air capture (DAC) hubs program. Political polling can feel like a dark art, but we're grateful to Danielle for taking the time to help demystify it.

In this episode, we cover:

[2:40] An overview of Data for Progress and Danielle's background
[7:38] The organization's earned media success
[9:02] How Data for Progress is structured and the skill sets that contribute to its rapid response
[13:02] Polling results regarding climate messaging and trigger words
[21:00] Polarization around electric vehicles
[23:36] The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and popular electrification rebates
[26:10] Polling results from states that are receiving financial benefits from the IRA
[27:32] The role of resiliency messaging
[30:46] Direct air capture (DAC) hubs and regional differences in sentiment
[35:42] The importance of environmental justice and workforce development in the clean energy transition
[37:29] What's next for Data for Progress leading up to the 2024 election
[40:53] How people can help

Resources mentioned:

Get connected:
Danielle Deiseroth Twitter / LinkedIn
Cody Simms Twitter / LinkedIn
MCJ Podcast / Collective

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Episode recorded on August 3, 2023 (Published on August 14, 2023)

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*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant