Factor This

Tell us what you think of the show! In the shadow of the ongoing federal dismantling of renewable energy policy, a growing number of states are exploring the benefits of community solar. On this episode of the Factor This podcast, Jorge Vargas, the co-founder and CEO of distributed generation platform Aspen Power, rallies behind his industry at a critical moment, detailing the importance of such projects amid unprecedented electric load growth.Want to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.This week’s episode features special guest Sam Black, a filmmaker and journalist for More Perfect Union, who began investigating the early impacts of political uncertainty on clean energy sectors following Donald Trump's re-election. This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Kevin Doffing, from Project Vanguard, who just shared a post on solar and farmland. He cites the 100 acres of land for ethanol = 1 acre of land for solar stat, then asks the questions: Do we want to keep burning food for fuel? Or use a fraction of that land to power our homes, cars, and grid? This Week in Cleantech — July 18, 2025Why Americans Can’t Buy the World’s Best Electric Car — The New York TimesSupercharging Solar With Quantum Dots — The Wall Street JournalDems couldn’t save Biden’s energy programs — so they’ll try to make them a weapon against the GOP — POLITICO4.6 Billion Years On, the Sun Is Having a Moment — The New YorkerHe Voted For Trump. It Cost Him His Job – More Perfect UnionWant to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.This week’s episode features special guest Mark Gongloff from Bloomberg, who wrote about how Senate Republicans are proposing nearly $18 billion in new subsidies for fossil-fuel companies over the next decade.This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Mark Jacobs, co-founder of EVmath. Mark led marketing for the DOE-funded EMPOWER Project which helps workplaces install EV chargers for their employees. This Week in Cleantech — July 11, 2025 Trump’s crackdown on renewable energy has just begun — The Washington PostThe Permitting Crisis for Renewables — Heatmap NewsHow the Trump tax bill could help China win at A.I. — The Washington PostAmerica invents. Others deploy. — Latitude MediaThe GOP Wants to Give Big Oil a Handout It Doesn’t Need — BloombergWant to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.This week’s episode features special guest Maeve Allsup from Latitude Media, who wrote about how a a new startup allowed an Oracle data center using Nvidia GPUs to cut its power consumption 25% during hours of peak grid demand without sacrificing performance.This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is JoeBen Bevirt, founder of Joby Aviation, a company developing electric air taxis for commercial passenger service. This week, its electric air taxi completed a series of piloted, vertical-takeoff-and-landing wingborne flights in Dubai. Congratulations, JoeBen! This Week in Cleantech — July 07, 2025 Ford Forced to Idle Multiple US Plants on China Magnet Shortage – BloombergChina's Clean Energy Boom Could Win the Race to Power the Future – New York TimesClimate threat to U.S. infrastructure is accelerating. Here's what's most at risk – CNBCRed States–And AI–Are Big Losers From Trump’s Clean Energy Massacre – ForbesNvidia and Oracle tapped this startup to flex a Phoenix data center – Latitude MediaWant to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.This week’s episode features special guest Michael Grunwald from the Atlantic, who wrote aobut how we won’t meet climate goals without fixing our food system.This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Kakani Katija, creator of the gaming app FathomVerse. This summer, Katija’s team plans to test an AI underwater robot that will search for specific marine species and collect data. The goal is to deploy a fleet of underwater AI-enabled drones constantly monitoring marine animals to gain insight into the ocean’s impact on global climate.This Week in Cleantech — June 27, 2025 The U.S. Gave Up Its Lead in Clean Energy Sectors Before. It Might Be Doing It Again. — The Wall Street JournalBlackouts, Brownouts, and Freaked-Out Grid Operators: The Summer of Load Has Arrived — Heatmap News‘Throwing us off a cliff’: Megabill could derail hundreds of planned clean energy projects — POLITICONew York to Build One of First U.S. Nuclear-Power Plants in Generation — The Wall Street JournalHumanity Can Quit Fossil Fuels—But Not Food — The AtlanticWant to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

Laura Fischer and Andrea Staid from EPRI’s Energy Systems and Climate Analysis Group discuss the Climate READi initiative, which aims to bolster the power sector's resilience against climate risks. They highlight the collaborative efforts of over 40 utilities and various organizations in creating standardized guidance. The duo dives into the complexities of climate impacts on utility infrastructure and the need for improved data practices. They also emphasize the importance of workforce knowledge transfer and making climate data publicly accessible to enhance collaboration.

Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.This week’s episode features special guest Scott Waldman from E&E News, who wrote about how the Trump administration is "crippling" the government’s ability to research global warming.This week's "Cleantechers of the Week" are the slain and wounded MN legislators, Rep. Melissa Hortman and Sen. John Hoffman. Rep. Hortman was the key legislative leader who shepherded Minnesota’s landmark climate and clean energy bill in 2023. With the passage of that legislation, Minnesota became the 22nd state in the nation to commit to 100% carbon-free electricity, requiring the state’s investor-owned utilities to be fully carbon-free by 2040.This Week in Cleantech — June 23, 2025The winners and losers of the Senate's take on the 'One Big Beautiful Bill' – Factor This!The U.S. invested in EV battery plants. Now they may be stranded – The Washington PostEnergy Abundance Won’t Fix Electricity Bills – The AtlanticWhat a pioneering project means for ocean carbon removal – TrellisHow Trump’s assault on science is blinding America to climate change – E&E NewsWant to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.This week’s episode features special guest Ari Natter from Bloomberg, who wrote about how the Trump administration plans to repurpose Biden’s $400 billion green bank to fund loans for nuclear, geothermal, and critical mineral projectsThis week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Mayor Mondale Robinson of Enfield, North Carolina. He led a plan to build a solar farm, resilience hub, and weatherization center in Enfield, cutting $650 monthly energy bills, replacing crumbling grid infrastructure, and using clean energy to bring jobs and economic independence to a historically Black, underserved rural community.This Week in Cleantech — June 6, 2025The Supreme Court Just Started a Permitting Revolution — HeatmapU.S. Oil Companies Are ‘Battening Down the Hatches’ — The New York TimesWhy Wind And Solar Make Grids More Vulnerable to Blackouts — The Wall Street JournalChinese battery glut plugs into solar boom to power Pakistan — The Financial TimesTrump Plans to Tap Biden’s Green Bank to Make Billions in Loans — BloombergWant to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

In this episode, the hosts discuss BYD's impressive achievement of surpassing Tesla in European EV sales. They also tackle a pivotal court ruling that questions the administration's tariff policies, which could reshape the clean tech landscape. Attention turns to the future of nuclear energy with new executive orders, while the solar industry faces challenges from potential legislative changes in Ohio. The highlights include a creative student project that showcases the power of solar energy, embodying the hope for a brighter, greener future.

Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey.This week’s episode features special guest Jack Ewing from The New York Times, who wrote about how Massachusetts start-up Factorial Energy, led by Siyu Huang, has successfully tested its solid-state battery in a Mercedes-Benz EQS sedanThis week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Carlo Angeles, of the Biodiversity Credit Alliance who posted about how defaunation is breaking our forests. He shared that there is a 68% decrease in forest regeneration when key dispersers are gone, along with other information that we’ll include in our episode writeup. Congratulations, Carlo!This Week in Cleantech — May 22, 2025 Tax bill passed by House Republicans would gut Biden-era clean energy tax credits –– AP NewsSwiss Clean-Energy Startup Produces Diesel From Solar Power –– The Wall Street JournalTrump orders the government to stop enforcing rules he doesn’t like –– The Washington PostRenewable Energy Is Booming in Texas. Republicans Want to Change That. –– The New York TimesA Decade-Long Search for a Battery That Can End the Gasoline Era –– The New York TimesWant to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com