Inevitable

Today’s guest is Ken Kimmell, President of Union of Concerned Scientists, a leading science-based nonprofit that combines the knowledge and influence of the scientific community with the passion of concerned citizens to build a healthy planet and a safer world.Ken has more than 30 years of experience in government, environmental policy, and advocacy. He is a national advocate for clean energy and transportation policies and a driving force behind UCS’s “Power Ahead” campaign to build a large and diverse group of clean energy leadership states. Ken served on the Commission on the Future of Transportation in the Commonwealth, which advised Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker’s administration on future transportation needs and challenges. Ken was one of 18 members the governor appointed to the panel charged with looking at five areas anticipated to have a dramatic impact on transportation: climate and resiliency, transportation electrification, autonomous and connected vehicles, transit and mobility services, and land use and demographic trends.Prior to joining UCS in May 2014, Ken was the Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP), an agency with a $100 million budget and 800 employees, including a large staff of scientists and engineers. As commissioner, he also served as chairman of the board of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, helping to prod the nine member states to reduce power plant carbon emissions by almost 50 percent through 2020, reducing emissions in the region by some 90 million tons.Ken has also served as general counsel at the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs in Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick’s administration, and spent 17 years as the director and senior attorney at a Boston-based law firm specializing in environmental, energy, and land-use issues.Ken decided to focus his legal work on environmental issues after clerking for the U.S. District Court in San Francisco, where he assisted a judge in a case involving the health effects of Agent Orange. Originally from New York, he earned his bachelor’s degree at Wesleyan University and his law degree at the University of California, Los Angeles.Ken has been quoted widely, including by the Associated Press, the Boston Globe, Bloomberg Business, the New York Times and the Washington Post, and has appeared numerous times on E&E TV and National Public Radio.In today’s episode, we cover:Overview and origin story of Union of Concerned ScientistsScientists, and their changing views regarding political advocacyNature of UCS work, and some example projectHow UCS selects these projects, and what success looks likeDetails on tactics and executionWhat motivates Ken personally do the work he doesKen’s assessment of where we are, and what has gone right and wrong in climate fightWhat gives Ken optimism looking forwardRole of States vs Federal GovernmentKen’s thoughts on the best way to get meaningful bipartisan legislation doneKen’s thoughts on most impactful things that could happen to accelerate progress'How Ken would allocate big pot of $ to maximize it’s impact in climate fightKen’s advice for how you and I can helpLinks to topics discussed in this episode:Union of Concerned Scientists website: https://www.ucsusa.org/Housing & Economic Recovery Act of 2008: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Housing_and_Economic_Recovery_Act_of_2008Los Angeles’ pledge to ban gas-powered cars by 2030: https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-mayors-emissions-free-cities-20171023-story.htmlEnvironmental Voter Project: https://www.environmentalvoter.org/U.S. Chamber of Commerce: https://www.uschamber.com/California’s goal of 100% clean energy by 2050: https://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-100-percent-clean-energy-20190110-story.htmlLouis Brandeis: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_BrandeisYou can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at info@myclimatejourney.co, where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests.Enjoy the show! Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Today’s guest is Paulina Jaramillo, Professor, Engineering and Public Policy, & Co-Director, Green Design Institute at Carnegie Mellon University.Dr. Paulina Jaramillo has a bachelor’s in civil and environmental engineering from Florida International University (2003), as well as a master's and PhD in civil and environmental engineering with an emphasis in green design from Carnegie Mellon University (2004 and 2007, respectively). Her past research has focused on life cycle assessment of energy systems with an emphasis on climate change impacts and mitigation research. As a professor at Carnegie Mellon University, she is involved in key multi-disciplinary research projects to better understand the social, economic and environmental implications of energy consumption and the public policy tools that can be used to support sustainable energy development and consumption. She is now the Co-Director of the Green Design Institute and has started pursuing research about infrastructure systems for global development.In today’s episode, we cover:The nature of Dr. Jaramillo’s research, and how she came to focus in the areas she doesSome of the unique challenges of Africa, in terms of both climate change and energy povertyHow the work of her students is funded, and from what type of donorsThe criteria that make a project a good focus to take on, and some example projects that her students are currently working onHow Dr. Jaramillo measures project successThe role of academic research in broader solution developmentThe growing importance and challenges of science communicationBroader discussion about climate change, where we are, and some of the most impactful potential solution areasDr. Jaramillo’s advice for anyone looking to find their lane in the climate fightLinks to topics discussed in this episode:Dr. Jaramillo bio: https://www.cmu.edu/epp/people/faculty/paulina-jaramillo.htmlCMU Africa: https://www.africa.engineering.cmu.edu/National Science Foundation: https://www.nsf.govMini-grids: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mini-gridsDiesel generator: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diesel_generatorFederal Energy Regulatory Commission: https://www.ferc.gov/Subsistence farming: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subsistence_agriculture1.5C IPCC report: https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/You can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at info@myclimatejourney.co, where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests.Enjoy the show! Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Today’s guest is Justin Guay, Director of Global Climate Strategy at Sunrise Project, and organization that grows social movements to drive the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy as fast as possible.Justin  has a decade of experience in nonprofit advocacy and foundation strategy development, including managing grant making and strategy for global coal campaigns at ClimateWorks Foundation and the Packard Foundation. At the Packard foundation he oversaw a $40 million grant making portfolio across all climate and energy priorities in India, China, the US, the EU and South East Asia. He has also run the Sierra Club’s International Coal Campaign as the Associate Director for the International Climate Program.  The program focused on global efforts to transition energy systems beyond coal to clean energy with a special focus on international finance.In today’s episode, we cover:Overview of Sunrise ProjectJustin’s history pre-Sunrise ProjectWhen he started caring about climate change, and whyHow his thinking has evolved on the problem from when he started to nowGoals of Sunrise project and nature of the coal problemWhere we are with getting off of coal and where we need to get toBiggest changes that would accelerate this pathBiggest hurdles to these coming about and how to helpRole of CCS, nuclear, etcRole of innovation, philanthropy, and policyJustin’s advice for others looking to find their lane in the climate fightLinks to topics discussed in this episode:The Sunrise Project: https://sunriseproject.org.au/ClimateWorks Foundation: https://www.climateworks.org/Sierra Club: https://www.sierraclub.org/IPCC 1.5 degree report: https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/Global Energy Monitor: https://globalenergymonitor.org/Ohio coal and nuclear bailout: https://insideclimatenews.org/news/23072019/ohio-coal-nuclear-bailout-law-signed-cuts-renewable-energy-efficiency-programs-governor-dewineYou can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at info@myclimatejourney.co, where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests.Enjoy the show! Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Today’s guest is Phil Giudice, Board Member at Ambri, FirstFuel, PRIME Coalition, Clean Air Task Force and NE Clean Energy Council. Most recently, Phil was the CEO of Ambri. Ambri, formerly Liquid Metal Battery Corporation, is a technology company creating cost effective, reliable, wide spread grid electricity storage solutions, enabling separation of power demand from power supply. Phil has more than 30 years' experience in the energy industry as a geologist, consultant, executive, and state official.Phil was appointed by US Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu to US DOE's Energy Efficiency and Renewables Advisory Committee as well as its State Energy Advisory Board. In addition, he is a board member for the energy business leadership trade group Advanced Energy Economy as well as the efficiency start up FirstFuel. Prior to Ambri, Phil served the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as Undersecretary of Energy and as Commissioner of the Department of Energy Resources, the state agency with primary responsibility for fulfilling Governor Deval Patrick's vision for a clean energy future. Prior to his service in the Patrick-Murray Administration, Phil was senior vice president and board member at EnerNOC, a start-up providing electricity demand-management services to businesses, institutions, utilities, and grid operators that became a public company in 2007. He was previously a senior partner and leader of Mercer Management Consulting's global energy utilities practice for 20 years. He started his career as a metals exploration geologist with Freeport-McMoRan and with Chevron. Phil is also active in the nonprofit realm, having help found the Center for Effective Philanthropy and serving as Board Chair for 8 years as well as currently serving on the President's Council of ACCION. In addition, he completed full terms on the boards of the City Year Boston, First Parish Church of Wayland, and Haitian Health Foundation. He was also the founding chair of Boston Cares. Phil is a geologist (B.S. from University of New Hampshire and M.S. in Economic Geology from the University of Arizona) and a management professional (M.B.A. from Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth). In today’s episode, we cover: Phil’s fascinating career, and the different hats he has worn over the years as a strategy consultant, in oil and gas, in government, and in cleantech. The EnerNOC ride, from employee #3 to publicly traded Phil’s time as Energy Commissioner, and then as Undersecretary of Energy for the State of MA. The Ambri story. Phil’s reflections on decades of work on this area, and our seeming lack of progress. Some reasons for optimism. Phil’s rallying cry to me, and anyone else who wants to help in the climate fight. Phil’s views on carbon pricing. Some examples of how we have successfully solved some adjacent problems. Phil’s words of warning to me about my podcasting :) A substantive discussion about some of the barriers preventing more people from helping and more progress from being made. Phil’s advice and the areas he is most excited about. Links to topics discussed in this episode: Ambri: http://www.ambri.com/ Enel X (formerly EnerNOC): https://www.enelx.com/n-a/en Chevron: https://www.chevron.com/ Mercer: https://www.mercer.com/ Deval Patrick: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deval_Patrick Ian Bowles: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ian_Bowles Dr. Donald Sadoway: https://dmse.mit.edu/people/donald-r-sadoway Total: https://www.total.com/en Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative: https://www.rggi.org/ 350.org: https://350.org/ You can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at info@myclimatejourney.co, where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests. Enjoy the show! Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Today’s guest is Bill Nussey, CEO & Founder at the Freeing Energy Project.Bill Nussey is the founder of the Freeing Energy Project, whose mission is to accelerate the shift to cleaner, cheaper energy. Prior to Freeing Energy, Bill spent most of his career as a tech CEO. His first company, which he co-founded in high school, provided graphics software for early, text-based personal computers. His second company, Da Vinci Systems, was started out of his college dorm room and grew to serve millions of users across 45 countries. Later, he spent several years as a venture capitalist with Greylock. In 1998, he left the firm to run a portfolio company, iXL, which went public and grew to almost $500 million in revenue. After iXL, he joined Silverpop as CEO. Silverpop grew to nearly $100 million and became a global leader in cloud-based marketing. In 2014, IBM acquired the company and made it the foundation of the IBM Marketing Cloud. Shortly after the acquisition, Bill was promoted to VP Corporate Strategy out of IBM’s world headquarters in New York. Bill’s companies have created thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in value.For the last few years, Bill has been conducting research for a 2019 book called Freeing Energy. Supported by 200 interviews across the world, the book’s mission is to help non-industry readers understand how we can accelerate the shift to clean energy. The core ideas focus on decentralized (or local) energy, novel business models, and new approaches to ownership and finance. Much of his early research was shared at Bill’s October 2017 TED talk called Accelerating the Shift to Clean Energy.In 2018, Bill co-founded Solar Inventions. Based at Georgia Tech’s ATDC incubator, the company’s mission is to commercialize a set of scientific breakthroughs for improving silicon photovoltaics.Bill received a degree in electrical engineering from North Carolina State University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He holds several patents, has published two books and sits on several commercial and non-profit boards. Bill and his family are involved in a handful of projects providing off-grid, resilient electricity in places like East Africa and Puerto Rico.In today’s episode, we cover:Bill’s history, and what led him to get excited about energyHow Bill went about switching gears to transition into this new field (to him)Bill’s book, why he wrote it, and the process he followed to pull it togetherDigitization of energy opportunityPotential of energy innovation of appealing across both sides of the political aisleRole of venture capital in clean energy innovationLessons from last cleantech bubbleSolar and batteries, and implications when cost becomes less than purchasing electricity from the gridOne policy change that would move the needle more than any otherBill’s thoughts on politics, GND, etc.Importance of looking at carbon equivalents as well, not just carbonInevitability of putting a price on carbonRole of utilities and oil/gas companiesThoughts on upcoming election and the stakesBill’s advice to others trying to find their lane in the climate fightLinks to topics discussed in this episode:Freeing Energy: https://www.freeingenergy.com/Bill Nussey: https://www.linkedin.com/in/billnussey/Bubba McDonald: http://www.psc.state.ga.us/pscinfo/bios/mcdonald.aspAmory Lovins: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amory_LovinsLoren McDonald: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lorenmcdonald/Solar Inventions: https://www.solarinventions.com/Henry McCance: https://skoll.org/contributor/henry-mccance/Fullstory: https://www.fullstory.com/Arcadia Power: https://www.arcadiapower.com/Drift: https://www.joindrift.com/Form Energy: https://www.formenergy.com/Ethanol: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethanol_fuel_in_the_United_StatesYou can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at info@myclimatejourney.co, where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests.Enjoy the show! Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Today’s guest is Kelly Wanser, Executive Director of SilverLining, a mission organization driving research to ensure safe pathways for climate within a decade.Previously, Kelly was the director of the Marine Cloud Brightening Project, a program focused on research in reflecting sunlight to reduce heat in climate. Kelly is member of the National Academy of Sciences President’s Circle. She also served as Senior Advisor to Ocean Conservancy on climate-ocean risk and to Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory on industry strategy for fusion energy. A technologist, executive and entrepreneur, she previously founded companies in IT infrastructure, analytics and security, and is the author of over 20 patents. She resides in San Francisco.In today’s episode, we cover:Overview of geoengineeringChallenge of predicting earth system’s response to heat stress and risk of hitting catastrophic tipping points'The case for geoengineeringSilverLining’s work, and how it came to beWhat the critics say about geoengineering, and Kelly’s responses'Some example projects they have taken on at SilverLining'How the org is funded, and future goals in this regardWhat fossil fuel companies think of geoengineeringPotential risks, side effects, and unintended consequencesResearch vs widescale deployment, the best ways to stage exploration in this areaWhat else can be impactful in the climate fightKelly’s advice to others trying to find their lane to helpLinks to topics discussed in this episode:Stephen Schneider: https://stephenschneider.stanford.edu/References/Biography.htmlIPCC special report on oceans and cryosphere: https://www.ipcc.ch/srocc/home/The Royal Society: https://royalsociety.org/Marine cloud brightening: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine_cloud_brighteningStrategic aerosol injection: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stratospheric_aerosol_injectionSome links provided by Kelly to learn more about her work:TEDSummit 2019 Talk: Emergency Medicine for Our Climate FeverReport: for U.S. Policymakers:  Ensuring a Safe Climate: A National Imperative for Research in Climate Intervention and Earth System PredictionTestimony to the U.S. House Science, Space and Technology Committee, Subcommittee on Environment and Subcommittee on Energy Hearing — Geoengineering: Innovation, Research, and Technology, Nov 8, 2017You can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at info@myclimatejourney.co, where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests.Enjoy the show! Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Today’s guest is Albert Wenger, Managing Partner at Union Square Ventures, a NY-based venture capital firm.Before joining USV, Albert was the president of del.icio.us through the company’s sale to Yahoo and an angel investor (Etsy, Tumblr). He previously founded or co-founded several companies, including a management consulting firm and an early hosted data analytics company. Albert graduated from Harvard College in economics and computer science and holds a Ph.D. in Information Technology from MIT.In today’s episode, we cover:Albert’s assessment of the problem of climate change and his concern levelHis views on what it will take to get the problem under control in the short term and long termThe work they do at USV, their core expertise, and how that expertise can helpThe roles of innovation, policy, and collective actionWhat types of innovation can be most impactful, and whenThe upcoming election and stakesRoles of China and IndiaRoles of big oil and utilitiesHow Albert would allocate $100B to maximize its impact in climate fightAlbert’s advice for others looking to find their laneLinks to topics discussed in this episode:USV: https://www.usv.com/World After Capital: http://worldaftercapital.org/Greta Thunberg: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greta_ThunbergExtinction Rebellion: https://rebellion.earth/Nori: https://nori.com/John Maynard Keynes, Economics Policies for our Grandchildren: https://www.sloww.co/keynes-economic-possibilities/Faye McNeill: https://cheme.columbia.edu/faculty/v-mcneillEcosia: https://www.ecosia.org/Universal Basic Income: https://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/universal-basic-income-UBIHow Much is Enough?: https://www.amazon.com/How-Much-Enough-Money-Good/dp/152267795XYou can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at info@myclimatejourney.co, where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests.Enjoy the show! Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Today’s guest is Ramya Swaminathan, CEO of Malta, Inc. Malta’s electro-thermal energy storage system is a new grid-scale technology that collects and stores energy for long durations. Energy can be stored from any power generation source in any location – be it wind, solar, or fossil fuels – enabling reliable and predictable operation of the grid. Ramya joined Malta from Rye Development, where she was CEO, co-founder, and Member of the Board of FFP New Hydro. Under her leadership, Rye Development grew to be the leading developer of new hydropower projects in the United States and its portfolio of development projects, held at its holdco affiliate, FFP New Hydro, advanced from concept through FERC licensing and late stage development financing. She was also responsible for the expansion of Rye’s platform into energy storage, with the addition of two sizable pumped hydro storage development projects in the Pacific Northwest. At Rye Development, Ms. Swaminathan led a multi-disciplinary team, with specialists in engineering and construction, regulatory and environmental aspects, and power marketing.  She also led the company through several financing rounds, both at the platform and the project levels.  Prior to her work in the hydropower space, Ms. Swaminathan was a public finance banker, most recently as a Director at UBS, where she focused on public power clients and senior managed more than $10 billion in financings. Ms. Swaminathan holds a Master’s in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government and a BA in Anthropology from Amherst College. In today’s episode, we cover: Ramya’s background and what led her to Malta Overview of the grid, storage, long duration storage, and why it matters A look at hydro, lithium ion, and other companies and approaches gunning for long duration storage market Malta’s approach, long vision, progress to date, and what’s coming next How it works, which aspects are proven and which are the riskiest assumptions Business models for storage Regulatory risks Importance of transmission and distribution Unique opportunities in developing countries The right capital sources for this type of tough tech innovation Role of strategics as investors, partners, acquirers, etc. Role of insurance to decrease tough tech risk to make these projects more viable to finance One change that would bring highest impact for accelerating Malta’s progress Ramya’s advice to others looking to find their lane in the climate fight Links to topics discussed in this episode: Malta, Inc.: https://www.maltainc.com/ Long duration energy storage: https://energy.stanford.edu/storagex-initiative/projects/grand-challenges-energy-storage/long-duration-energy-storage Hydropower: https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/hydropower/ Breakthrough Energy Ventures: http://www.b-t.energy/ventures/ Cobalt mining: https://www.raconteur.net/business-innovation/cobalt-mining-human-rights Distribution grid: https://energyeducation.ca/encyclopedia/Distribution_grid Electric power transmission: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_power_transmission Electrothermal storage: https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/alphabet-spins-off-malta-a-long-duration-electro-thermal-storage-startup-wi#gs.1wa84f You can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at info@myclimatejourney.co, where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests. Enjoy the show! Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Today’s guest is Mark Reynolds, Executive Director at Citizens’ Climate Lobby. Executive Director Mark Reynolds’ tenure at Citizens’ Climate Lobby has been marked by exceptionally rapid growth, with the organization doubling or tripling in size every year. During his years as a private sector trainer and consultant, Citizens’ Climate Education Executive Director Mark Reynolds worked to maximize personal and organizational effectiveness in a variety of fields. Today, he uses those skills to empower ordinary citizens to educate influential stakeholders about the benefits of national climate solutions. As a globally-recognized expert on helping disparate interests find common ground on energy, public policy, and the environment, Mark has appeared before the Yale Project on Climate Change Communication, AREday, and Power Shift. He oversees a training curriculum that reaches tens of thousands of supporters every year, has been a frequent guest on TV and radio shows, and has written op-eds on climate solutions for 85 print journals, including the Houston Chronicle, the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Des Moines Register, the Austin American-Statesman, and the Salt Lake Tribune. Mark also serves on multiple advisory boards including Climate Advocate Platform and Climate Cost Project. In today’s episode, we cover: CCL founding story and their areas of focus The growth CCL has had under Mark’s leadership, and why Mark feels that is Polarized government and implications for getting things done Details of their carbon fee and dividend proposal Where things stand today and where they need to go Some headwind with their proposal and carbon pricing in general The CCL playbook and plan of attack Discussion on how bills get signed into law and what this bill would need to get signed into law Learnings from Waxman Markey How people can  help Parallels Mark draws to cigarette smoking GND and price on carbon If Mark could wave magic want to accelerate their efforts, what would he change and why Links to topics discussed in this episode: Citizens’ Climate Lobby: https://citizensclimatelobby.org/ Marshall Saunders: https://citizensclimatelobby.org/about-ccl/citizens-climate-lobbys-founder/ Microcredit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microcredit Citizens’ Climate International conference: https://citizensclimatelobby.org/2019-conference/ Collective action: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collective_action David Jolly CCL interview: https://citizensclimatelobby.org/a-former-republican-congressmans-take-on-the-midterms/ Theda Skocpol: https://scholar.harvard.edu/thedaskocpol/home Grover Norquist tax pledge: https://www.businessinsider.com/who-is-grover-norquist-pledge-signers-list-fiscal-cliff-republicans-tax-2012-11 Climate Leadership Council: https://www.clcouncil.org/ Jonathan Haidt TED talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/jonathan_haidt_on_the_moral_mind?language=en EICDA: https://teddeutch.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=399493 Frank Luntz: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Luntz Frank Luntz’s call for climate action: https://grist.org/article/the-gops-most-famous-messaging-strategist-calls-for-climate-action/ You can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at info@myclimatejourney.co, where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests. Enjoy the show! Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant

Today’s guest is Ted Nordhaus, Founder & Executive Director at the Breakthrough Institute. Ted Nordhaus is a leading global thinker on energy, environment, climate, human development, and politics. He is the founder and executive director of the Breakthrough Institute and a co-author of An Ecomodernist Manifesto. Over the last decade, he has helped lead a paradigm shift in climate, energy, and environmental policy. He was among the first to emphasize the imperative to "make clean energy cheap" in The Harvard Law and Policy Review, explained why efforts to establish legally binding international limits on greenhouse gas emissions would fail in The Washington Post and Democracy Journal, made the case for nuclear energy as a critical global warming solution in The Wall Street Journal, has written on the limits to energy efficiency and the need to prepare for climate change in The New York Times, and has argued for the importance of intensifying agricultural production in order to spare land for forests and biodiversity in Scientific American and The Guardian. His 2007 book Break Through, co-authored with Michael Shellenberger, was called "prescient" by Time and "the best thing to happen to environmentalism since Rachel Carson's Silent Spring" by Wired. (An excerpt in The New Republic can be read here.) Their 2004 essay, "The Death of Environmentalism," was featured on the front page of the Sunday New York Times, sparked a national debate, and inspired a generation of young environmentalists. Over the years, Nordhaus been profiled in The New York Times, Wired, the San Francisco Chronicle, the National Review, The New Republic, and on NPR. In 2007, he received the Green Book Award and Time magazine's 2008 "Heroes of the Environment" award. Nordhaus is executive editor of the Breakthrough Journal, which The New Republic called "among the most complete efforts to provide a fresh answer" to the question of how to modernize liberal thought, and the National Review called "The most promising effort at self-criticism by our liberal cousins in a long time." In today’s episode, we cover: Ted’s background and history, and what led him to care about climate change Ted’s views on the problems with the environmental movement, which led him to founding BTI BTI mission, vision, work Ted’s views on the nature of climate change, and the misconceptions people have about the best ways to solve. Ted’s views on the best path forwards, and where innovation, policy, and government fit in. Ted’s views on how to think about the 2020 election and the stakes. Different views here than most other guests! Links to topics discussed in this episode: The Breakthrough Institute: https://thebreakthrough.org/ Neoliberalism: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoliberalism Green New Deal: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_New_Deal The Empty Radicalism of the Climate Apocalypse article: https://issues.org/the-empty-radicalism-of-the-climate-apocalypse/ Shale gas revolution: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shale_gas Advanced nuclear: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advanced_nuclear Carbon capture and storage: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbon_capture_and_storage Nuclear Regulatory Commission: https://www.nrc.gov/ Net Power: https://www.netpower.com/ 45Q tax credit: https://www.betterenergy.org/blog/primer-section-45q-tax-credit-for-carbon-capture-projects/ Nuclear energy leadership act: https://www.energy.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/2019/3/murkowski-booker-and-13-colleagues-reintroduce You can find me on twitter @jjacobs22 or @mcjpod and email at info@myclimatejourney.co, where I encourage you to share your feedback on episodes and suggestions for future topics or guests. Enjoy the show! Enjoyed this episode? Please leave us a review! Share feedback or suggest future topics and guests at info@mcj.vc.Connect with MCJ:Cody Simms on LinkedInVisit mcj.vcSubscribe to the MCJ Newsletter*Editing and post-production work for this episode was provided by The Podcast Consultant