In this episode of Wicked Problems, host Richard Delevan delves into the latest developments in the UK's carbon budget and examines the prospects for clean industrial transitions in Europe. With highlights from the UK's Climate Change Committee's seventh carbon budget and insights from Emma Pinchbeck on future household energy savings, the discussion emphasizes the urgent need to reduce electricity prices while expanding clean power technologies. Interviews with climate tech experts, including Liam Hardy from Green Alliance and Charlie Mercer from the Startup Coalition, explore the pressing need for government support in electrifying industries and the potential impacts of decentralized approaches to renewable energy. The episode concludes with reflections on BP's strategic pivot back to oil and gas and the broader geopolitical implications of the energy transition.00:00 Introduction to Clean Electricity and Carbon Capture00:21 Weekly Climate News Recap01:33 UK's Carbon Budget and Future Projections03:34 Challenges and Opportunities in Clean Energy Transition05:45 BP's Shift in Energy Strategy07:06 Interview with Charlie Mercer on Climate Tech09:08 Government Spending and Climate Tech Investments15:41 Liam Hardy Green Alliance17:16 Interview with Liam Hardy on Electrification of Industry29:46 Encouraging Innovation in Smaller Startups30:20 The Cost Disparity Between Electricity and Natural Gas31:11 Understanding the Spark Gap33:19 Challenges in Reducing Electricity Costs37:17 Government Policies and Industrial Support39:32 Creative Solutions for Energy Transition41:24 Debating Hydrogen and Carbon Capture45:43 Final Thoughts and Future Directions48:39 BP Investor Call48:39 BP's Strategic Reset and Future Plans56:19 The Gulf of America Controversy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For full show notes and ad-free listening come to wickedproblems.earth.In this episode, host Richard Delevan discusses the failures and frustrations of traditional climate activism with sustainability strategist Joseph Gelfer. They explore Gelfer's call for 'climate populism'—a revolutionary, rather than reformist, approach to climate change that involves mobilizing public dissatisfaction with the elites. Delavan delves into how populist tactics used by figures like Donald Trump and Nigel Farage could inform a more aggressive climate strategy. The episode also touches on the far-reaching implications of political and technological trends led by influential figures such as Elon Musk and Peter Thiel, and what that means for the future of climate action.00:00 Introduction and Frustration with Current Approaches00:25 Welcome to Wicked Problems00:51 Net Zero 2050: A Sinister Goal01:17 Energy Policies and Their Consequences01:40 Testimony of Secretary of Energy Chris Wright01:56 The Role of Jordan Peterson and the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship02:40 The Impact of Elon Musk and Data Control03:27 Conversation with Joseph Gelfer: Sustainability Strategies06:43 The Disconnect in Sustainability Efforts07:58 The Need for Revolutionary Change10:21 Understanding Trumpism and Climate Denial17:39 Climate Populism: A New Approach21:27 The Potential of Farage and Future Political Shifts24:44 Defining Success and Truth26:33 The Spectrum of Truth27:30 The Climate Crisis and Ethical Dilemmas29:54 Final Thoughts and Contact Information33:47 The Conservative Movement's Long Game37:41 Silicon Valley's Libertarian Vision43:47 The Crisis of Democracy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This edition is supported by our friends at the Climate Majority Project. If you’re in the UK, and have decided it’s time to do something more than doomscrolling and more useful than throwing paint…on 15-16 March at Limehouse in London.Get more info and tickets here.Fires in Los Angeles at last count had $35 billion plus of insured losses and probably $300 billion plus of economic losses. Who should pay?Here to help decode that we spoke with Dave Jones - former Insurance Commissioner for California from 2011 through 2018. He's now the director of the Climate Risk Initiative at University of California, Berkeley. He recently wrote an oped in the New York Times arguing that the oil companies should have to pay for the damages of the LA wildfires, to arrest the insurance crisis.Steve Coulter of the Green Alliance here in the UK expands on, slight tension, conundrum, paradox. Steve talks about his recent briefing on this point, particularly focusing on Lloyd's of London.And, um, finally, our good friend, returning champion, Dana Drugmand, journalist, publisher of Climate in the Courts and One Earth Now, who's been helping us understand these issues in the US nearly a year now. She helps us explore the counteroffensive launched against the Empire State’s 2024 Climate Superfund law by 22 Republican state attorneys general who filed suit against state of New York to challenge the law signed by Governor Kathy Hochul at the end of last year. Dana compares that to some of the other pushback to the first-of-its-kind bill that was passed and signed into law earlier last year in Vermont.06:35 Interview with Dave Jones: Background and Climate Risk08:22 Insurance Industry's Role in Climate Change10:11 Holding Fossil Fuel Companies Accountable15:03 Subrogation and Legal Actions18:12 Impact on Insurance Markets and Homeowners20:15 Financial Risks and Regulatory Responses38:39 Mitigation Measures and Legislative Actions48:06 Industry Split on Sustainable Practices49:09 Lloyd's of London: A Case Study in Poor Performance50:33 The Growing Uninsurability Crisis53:53 Government Intervention and Systemic Risks56:33 Call to Action for Policymakers59:50 New York's Climate Superfund Law and Legal Challenges01:07:34 The Broader Implications of Climate Litigation01:22:40 Conclusion and Final Thoughts Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last week, to a lot of online reaction, not all of it good, we spoke to Kelly Wanser from Silver Lining, a non profit that advocates for research in this area. Not everyone was happy we talked about the subject. Understandably people are concerned, with good reason. Humanity doesn't have a great track record of avoiding being reckless or selfish and making decisions here in the so called global north that will definitely hurt other people — but we do it anyway.Whether it's like small island states that will go under the waves in our lifetimes because of. These effects and at the International Court of Justice hearing lawyers for big nations basically saying, “oh, well, that's sad Sorry about that. I don't think we can do about it though But here here's some tickets to get some immigration for a couple thousand of you anyway to come to Australia but in exchange, we're gonna need your fishing rights and Mineral rights for the undersea stuff.”Or telling India and China, “sorry. No, you cannot have the standard of living that fossil fuels enabled The West to have.” Weirdly, not everyone is super excited with that kind of trade off.So if we’re going to feel obliged to look seriously at SRM - which is not the same as endorsing it - at the very least there should be ground rules: Insisting that the science done by and for researchers in the global south should be given privileged position in conversations about whether to do that research, about how to weigh potential costs and benefits, how to govern any of that stuff, how to even talk about it. Because places like Latin America, or South Africa, or Pakistan tend to have communities least able to cope with any potential negative outcomes. Andy Parker, Founder and CEO of the Degrees Initiative based in Bristol in the UK, has doing exactly that for 16 years - we think it made for an interesting chat.And in May, Degrees Initiative is convening the world’s largest conference to date on SRM, in Cape Town, South Africa. It might well reset the global conversation on the science, the economics, and the geopolitics of SRM.If you’re enjoying these conversations, do please share it, leave a rating and review on the platform of your choice, and send us feedback here at wickedproblems.earth.00:49 Current Climate Challenges and Innovations01:39 Global Perspectives on Climate Science05:14 The Ethics of Solar Geoengineering10:05 Interview with Andy Parker19:22 The Degrees Initiative and Global South23:45 Potential Risks and Considerations of SRM26:32 Potential Side Effects of Not Using SRM26:57 Security Implications and Uncertainties27:40 Degrees Initiative: Research and Support28:40 Fictional Scenarios and Real Concerns30:03 Termination Shock and Climate Impact37:01 Governance Challenges of SRM40:22 Mainstream Media and SRM Discourse43:15 Popular Culture's Take on SRM45:50 Final Thoughts and Future Directions48:34 Conclusion and Contact Information Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Get all our episodes and show notes ad-free at wickedproblems.earth.Professor Dana R. Fisher of American University is one of the most astute analysts of two things going through a huge stress test right now in the US - climate science, and democracy.Wicked Problems is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.The necessity of today’s outro track will become obvious, and with apologies for my slandering of Flava Flav:She spoke to us from near Washington, where Elon Musk and his merry band of DOGE incels is being cheered on by Donald Trump as they ignore court orders and systematically gut research on the climate.She joined us at the end of last year, to talk about her book Saving Ourselves: From Climate Shocks to Climate Action. We planned to talk for maybe 20 minutes today about her recent work researching and documenting the vandalism to American science underway. Then she told us about her new research surveying attendees at the “People’s March” who were 75% female, overwhelmingly moderate, middle-aged, mainstream Democratic voters, she found that 33% of people surveyed thought violence was justified to protect American democracy. And that was BEFORE Trump’s inauguration and his pardon of those convicted of violently trying to overturn the results of the 2020 US election on Jan 6 2021.So we went over time. For nearly an hour.Come walk with us.Outro TracksChapters05:33 Introduction and Guest Welcome05:52 Discussing the Current State of the Apocalypse06:22 Field Work and Resistance Movements08:37 The People's March and Data Collection10:02 Media Misrepresentation and Crowd Sizes15:00 Political Violence and Survey Findings23:32 Impact on Federal Funding and Research29:06 Government Actions and Future Implications34:06 National Guard and Rising Tensions34:49 Impact on Jobs and Development35:39 USAID and Soft Power37:51 Theories on Government Dismantling38:38 Civil War and Martial Law Concerns39:02 Military's Role and January 6th Reflections48:20 Normalization of Violence51:00 Climate Change and Democracy52:36 Future Uncertainties and Personal ReflectionsThanksAppreciate you listening/watching/reading us. As we also get into it’s more important than ever that we get voices like Prof. Fisher’s to you to make sense of what’s happening. And what might be coming. We hope you’d consider helping us continue the work by becoming a material supporter of Wicked Problems - and maybe even share the love by gifting a subscription to someone who appreciates apocalyptic optimsm. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Get full show notes and our newsletter at wickedproblems.earth - and you can also get these episodes ad-free.Wicked Problems: Energy Transition and Decarbonization InsightsIn this episode of Wicked Problems, host Richard Delevan delves into key issues and recent developments in the energy transition and decarbonization efforts. . Special guest Freya Pratty from SIFTED.eu (get her climate tech newsletter here) shares insights into the growth and challenges within climate tech companies, including an in-depth look at Octopus Energy's software success, Kraken. The episode also highlights a significant paper from Oxford University examining the potential resilience of the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act against repeal, offering a glimmer of hope in the current political climate. Professor Sam Fankhauser of the Smith School joined us. And in some good news, the episode touches on the impressive rise of EV sales in the UK, policy impacts on the electric vehicle market, and the implications of Chinese EV makers entering the market. Ben Nelmes of New Automotive and Ben Kilbey of Bold Voodoo and EVUK came round. Join us for these crucial discussions and deep dive into the future of energy and climate policy.And clips from the Energy Transition Acceleration Forum at the British Library produced by The Carbon Trust - featuring Chris Stark of DESNZ being interviewed by Bloomberg's Akshat Rathi, Quadrature Climate Foundation's Greg de Temmermen, and Arthur Downing of Octopus Energy.00:00 Introduction and Consumer Issues00:34 Welcome to Wicked Problems01:20 Upcoming Interviews and Highlights01:51 Interview with Freya Pratty05:22 Deep Dive into Octopus and Kraken13:41 First of a Kind Factories17:07 Debate on Climate Tech Terminology29:00 Sam Fankhauser Oxford29:00 Interview with Professor Sam Fankhauser39:35 Navigating Congressional Influence on Climate Policy40:22 Vulnerabilities in Renewable Energy Policies41:16 The Role of Media and Reporting in Climate Change41:57 Global Perspectives on Deliverism and Climate Jobs43:28 Emotional vs. Rational Approaches to Climate Advocacy45:16 Global Climate Legislation Trends46:20 Anglo-Saxon Peculiarities in Climate Policy47:51 Future Research and Projects at Oxford Net Zero50:02 EV Sales Ben Squared50:27 Surprising Trends in UK EV Sales01:00:02 The Rise of Chinese EV Manufacturers01:04:35 Challenges and Opportunities in EV Market Policies01:15:54 The Importance of Affordable Electricity in Decarbonization01:18:46 UK's Role in Global Climate Leadership01:20:48 Outro Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Late last year we started interviewing folk in the business of solar radiation management (SRM) - aka one flavour of “geoengineering”. It’s a taboo subject. It’s sci-fi gold. It’s also something we’re going to be talking about. Particularly after famed climate scientist James Hansen and a platoon of other climate scientists published a new paper declaring not just the Paris Agreement goal of limiting warming to 1.5C to be in the rear-view mirror, but - as Damian Carrington in the Guardian summed it up: “The new analysis said global heating is likely to reach 2C by 2045, unless solar geoengineering is deployed.”The reason for a lot of this acceleration in global heating, say Hansen and colleagues, is (perversely) the result of successful efforts to reduce pollution. Specifically, removing sulfur from maritime fuel. That sulfur has been causing potentially millions of deaths a year due to respiratory diseases. So it’s being phased out. Only one problem - the sulfur was having the under-appreciated consequence of reflecting quite a lot of sunlight back into space. How much? More than the entire energy output of humanity in a given year. And now that it’s been removed, enough to - according to the paper - drive half the acceleration in global heating over the past 5 years or so.Hansen is hardly fringe for picking this up, though people don’t all agree on the significance. Zeke Hausfather, who was not involved in the research, is among climate scientist who has acknowledge this “aerosol forcing” problem. Some data of his turned up in Nat Bullard’s superb annual climate deck:Wicked Problems is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.On the call releasing their findings, Hansen et al discussed SRM. Which (even more perversely) often involves ideas for putting sulfur dioxide back into the atmosphere. But on purpose. To cool things off. To buy time.So here is part one of a series of conversations about SRM, featuring Kelly Wanser - the head of Silver Lining, one of the leading non-batshit-crazy outfits trying to do research on technologies that might make it possible. We’ll put out part two very soon.00:00 Introduction to the Climate Crisis00:28 The Doomsday Clock and Climate Realities01:57 Hansen's Climate Predictions02:55 Aerosol Forcing and Global Warming05:10 Purposeful Global Cooling08:04 Interview with Kelly Wanser11:07 Silver Linings' Mission and Climate Interventions23:19 Challenges and Ethical Questions31:32 Introduction to Luke Eisman and Make Sunsets31:50 Neal Stephenson's Influence and Geoengineering Concept32:45 Luke Eisman's DIY Approach to Geoengineering34:05 Critique of Non-Expert Interventions35:10 Challenges in Atmospheric Science37:51 Responsible Research and Global Perspectives40:10 The Importance of Atmospheric Monitoring47:56 Global South and Climate Risk Research 52:55 The Montreal Protocol and Climate Agreements54:54 Final Thoughts and Recommendations Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Come to wickedproblems.earth for full show notes.Sophie Hall of ETH Zürich joins Richard Delevan to discuss her research into using game theory to embed more fairness into the algorithms that increasingly control the services we rely upon for our everyday lives.00:00 Introduction to Wicked Problems00:04 The Role of AI in Critical Infrastructure01:01 AI's Impact on Society and Ethics03:19 Trust and AI in Life-or-Death Situations04:57 Personal Anecdotes and AI's Everyday Influence07:23 AI in Energy and Infrastructure08:48 Ethics and Fairness in AI Algorithms11:29 Interview with Sophie Hall: AI and Fairness12:47 Sophie's Research and Its Real-World Applications26:21 Challenges and Future Directions in AI and Policy45:02 Conclusion and Call to Action Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Get more at wickedproblems.earthSo much is happening that it’s hard to drink from the firehose of US executive orders on energy and crazy chaos orangutang screeches on presidential letterhead, UK debates about growth versus climate, and parsing the statements of tech broligarchs to the only people left who can hold them accountable – their investors during earnings calls this week.And that’s before we get to Heathrow and a Scottish court ruling that the Rosebank field was unlawfully given permission because it ignored carbon emissions – which I’m sure peaked the interest of lawyers for the 16 Just Stop Oil protestors facing some of the longest sentences ever handed down for non-violent protests.So we’ve got a mega-episode for you this Friday the last day of January. We’ve got climate comedian and UCL academic Matt Winning, along with climate journalist and BlueSky maestro Dave Vetter to help make sense of all of that. And we’ve got Adam Grant Bell of the UK consultancy Stonehaven, who after decades in and out of government has a pretty good sense for these things, setting some odds on what’s going to happen this year in getting enough renewables built to achieve the UK government’s goals of hitting clean power by 2030. And he thinks the UK government might this year finally move away from a national price for electricity and to a system where cheaper electricity from things like wind and solar will be reflected locally, something Octopus’s Greg Jackson and others have been calling for and could radically change decisions about where power gets generated and where you site things like factories that will use it.And because we can’t ignore that chaos orangutang with nuclear weapons, US-based Financial Times journos Amanda Chu and me aul mucker Jamie Smyth of Energy Source join us.00:13 Government's Role in the Chaos 00:18 Trump's Impact on Renewable Energy 00:45 Weekly Recap and Upcoming Topics 01:11 Elon Musk02:31 Climate and Energy Policies04:37 Interview with FT Journalists 05:49 Tracking Executive Orders 09:41 Impact on Renewable Energy Projects 10:29 Texas and Clean Energy Growth 12:48 Energy Policy and Executive Authority 13:49 Challenges in Renewable Energy Development 15:58 Geopolitical Factors and Market Dynamics 20:11 Future of Renewable Energy Auctions 36:55 Enhanced Geothermal and Government Policies 37:31 Small Modular Reactors and Long Duration Storage 38:22 Chancellor's Speech and Planning Reforms 39:30 Environmental and Climate Change Debates 40:37 Rosebank Ruling and Oil and Gas Projects 42:48 Interview with Dave Vedder and Matt Winning 44:34 AI Advancements and Energy Implications 53:46 Heathrow Expansion and Sustainable Aviation Fuel 01:04:43 Closing Thoughts and Upcoming EventsAll the TunesIf you’re enjoying the tunes, check out the whole outro playlist:https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2AWvHdqqNAUCJcByQEokut?si=2f56f6d68d2c4bff Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Imagine living in Los Angeles. Imagine that you actually wrote something nearly 10 years ago that pretty much nailed the fire we’re seeing this month. Imagine you put 10 years of your life into writing a novel that cut no corners and tried to make real the stakes and the conflicts those disasters would bring up – as a warning to act sooner. Now imagine the worst person in the world taking credit for your work while using the tragedy – that you forsaw – to turn people against the solutions that would do something to stop more of these disasters happening in future.How Stephen Markley, author of 2023 novel The Deluge, is keeping it together despite all the above I will never know, but I’m grateful he could make time to speak with me this week. And do suggest future guests to me on BlueSky or in the comments below.Share00:19 Predicting the Fire Disaster01:05 Reflecting on the Current Week02:12 Living Through the Fire03:43 The Role of Environmental Regulations04:21 Interview with Stephen Markley06:26 Stephen's Experience During the Fires11:23 The Political Landscape and Climate Policy26:43 Closing Thoughts and Future Outlook Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.