Wicked Problems - Climate Tech Conversations

Welcome back to Wicked Problems. The climate tech podcast and newsletter that while not at Climate Coachella in person has spent enough time at Expo City in Dubai to wonder if COP28 kept the Irish pub on site.Wicked Problems is a listener-supported show. To receive new shows to your inbox and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber at news.wickedproblems.uk.Serious work was continuing at COP in between Siberian Jurassic Park Wooly Mammoth exhibitions and unalloyed trade show booths - including the pledge to #3xRenewables by 2030. That’s been the planned positive headline for this COP since January. And while it would be good news, is the grid ready for that? Or will too much of the wind and solar built using trillions in (mostly private) investment find itself curtailed - aka wasted - rather than replacing old fossil fuel generating plants and meeting new demand?Gerhard Salge is Chief Technology Officer of Hitachi Energy and is one of the world’s foremost experts on power grid technologies. He sat down with Richard Delevan to talk about the implications of a 3xRenewables world on the grid.Gerhard's LinkedIn article.Gerhard’s Catalysts:Redefining Energy, with Laurent Segalen and Gerard ReidMichael Liebreich, founder of BloombergNEF, commentator, and host of Cleaning Up with Michael LiebreichMichael Barnard, chief strategist at TFIE, Forbes and Cleantechnica contributor and once (and future?) guest on Wicked ProblemsYou can also find this episode onApple PodcastsSpotifyYouTubeand anywhere you get podcasts.Get in touch at news.wickedproblems.uk where you can also get our newsletter and consider getting a paid subscription to help support our work.Thanks for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Wicked Problems. The climate tech show and newsletter with dogs that remind us that even the end of the world can’t take priority over a timely walk.Wicked Problems is listener-supported - consider becoming a paid subscriber at news.wickedproblems.uk. Andy Reisinger is a respected climate scientist who just published a new paper arguing that the gap between “staying under 1.5” and what the science says is likely means it’s time to talk seriously about managing overshoot.He spoke to in a personal capacity - and in that same capacity he published the paper:Temporary overshoot: Origins, prospects, and a long path ahead (1 Dec 2023)The paper - that link above provides free open access for 50 days, cherished subscriber, so don’t say we never get you anything - seeks to start a serious discussion about Overshoot and what to do about it.We discuss* nature of overshoot and why now* the role and needed scale of carbon removals (CDR) in the overshoot scenarios* going being Net Zero - and the burden-sharing dilemmas among sectors and countries* urgency of reducing other forcing GHGs, especially methaneIt feels taboo to even discuss, and getting back below 1.5 is something that both Andy and other scientists stress is going to be extremely difficult, extremely costly, and difficult to even discuss because it will inherently involve deciding between really bad options. Who pays? How much will those responsible be willing to pay to bring the world back under 1.5?Andy also references:Overconfidence in Overshoot - (29 Nov 2023)“Professor Joeri Rogelj, Director of Research at the Grantham Institute – Climate Change and the Environment, argues that the risks of climate overshoot are dangerous and underappreciated”Andy Reisinger:LinkedInBlueSkyWe also discussed Solar Radiation Management, prompted by a presentation from Thelma Krug from the IPCC:Thanks for listening.You can also find this episode onApple PodcastsSpotifyYouTubeand anywhere you get podcasts.Get in touch at news.wickedproblems.uk where you can also get our newsletter and consider getting a paid subscription to help support our work. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Former Vice President Al Gore joins the podcast to discuss the urgency of addressing climate change and the role of AI. They also explore Visions 2030's immersive experiences and AI-driven software. The Lumisphere project aims to change conversations about the future and climate, while SolarPunk offers an optimistic view of the future. They recommend reliable sources like Yale School of Climate Communications and highlight Bruce Mao's design thinking tools.

Dr. Sugandha Srivistav from Oxford Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment discusses the forgotten inventor George Cove who may have had a breakthrough in solar technology. They explore the possibility of Cove being kidnapped and how his disappearance impacted solar energy innovation. The podcast also delves into the impact of monopolies on innovation and the potential consequences of early solar dominance.

Welcome back to Wicked Problems - the climate tech podcast and newsletter that’s less stressful for King Charles than a fountain pen. As things heat up at COP28 in Dubai, and world leaders discuss how to agree to stop putting carbon dioxide up into the atmosphere, what do we do with the 1000 Gigatons of CO2 we’ve already stuck up there?Cara Maesano of RMI (formerly known as the Rocky Mountain Institute) speaks with co-hosts and about RMI’s new comprehensive 400-page applied innovation roadmap on Carbon Removal. It analyses 32 different carbon removal pathways and is aimed at policymakers, investors and other funders to identify the gaps in R&D needed for a “silver buckshot” approach towards scaled solutions for pulling CO2 out of the air to get us down from whatever the level above 420 ppm we’ll be if and when we reach Net Zero emissions.RMI: Applied Innovation Roadmap for CDRCara’s Catalysts:Ministry for the Future, by Kim Stanley RobinsonClimate Reparations: The Case for Carbon Removal, by David Wallace-WellsYou can also find this episode onApple PodcastsSpotifyYouTubeand anywhere you get podcasts.Get in touch at news.wickedproblems.uk where you can also get our newsletter and consider getting a paid subscription to help support our work.If you liked this conversation, consider sharing it with someone who hasn’t yet done the math about why CDR is not sufficient, but will be necessary.Thanks for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Wicked Problems. Ulrich Seitz has worked in climate tech for 15 years - as an entrepreneur, a venture investor, and as an advisor. And he thinks a boom in investment in climate adaptation technologies that face the consequences of climate change is right around the corner, even while not giving up on mitigation efforts.Ulrich SeitzCo-hosts Richard Delevan and Claire Brady talk with Ulrich about his views on the most investable sectors in adaptation, like water management and soil conservation. He talks about his Climate Adaptation Project, which aims to increase awareness and identify investment opportunities in adaptation. They discuss how extreme weather events and natural disasters are raising public awareness about climate change and the urgent need for adaptation strategies. Seitz emphasizes the significance of value creation in entrepreneurship and shares how dealing with smart individuals in his first company inspired his career path.Ulrich’s Catalyst: Be Useful, by Arnold SchwarzeneggerUlrich on LinkedInClimate Adaptation ProjectAdaptation Gap Report 2023, UN Environment ProgrammeUK Climate Change Committee on Barriers to Adaptation FinancePwC on AdaptationRichard on BlueSky and LinkedInClaire on LinkedIn and BlueSkySign up at news.wickedproblems.uk to get our newsletter and future episodes delivered right to your inbox. Get that and other episodes here or onAppleSpotifyYouTubeThanks for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Wicked Problems. Despite sounding like we’re auditioning to be the new noise of the TARDIS, we hope our conversation with Startup Coalition deputy policy director, and friend of the show, Charlie Mercer is easier to listen to than running a key over the bass strings of a piano.Charlie helped us decode the implications for the climate tech sector of this week’s UK “Autumn Statement”, which is not a new line of outerwear but a fancy name for the mini-budget unveiled this week by Chancellor Jeremy Hunt.Some of the highlights worth noting:* £960 million by 2030 for a “green industries growth accelerator” - calling out offshore wind, hydrogen, CCUS, power grids, and nuclear. (Which makes us wonder how much of that turns out to be new money.)* £2 billion for the automotive sector, mostly for “zero emissions investments”* £500 million for AI - some of which could find its way to climate tech applications* progress on removing barriers for pension funds to invest in climate tech and work better with VCs - Charlie points out that a 5% shift in UK pension investing would be £50 billion.* ensuring - thanks to Startup Coalition lobbying - that some 5,000 UK businesses didn’t wind up falling short of qualifying for R&D tax credits* promise of future clarity on “smart data” - which could inspire a whole range of new companies using that opted-in data for new ideas: like using smart electricity meter data to help manage demand and create “Virtual Power Plants” that are becoming a hot topic in the US.Charlie’s reaction on LinkedIn.And CarbonBrief had an excellent summary of the climate implications as well, worth checking out.We’ll be back Saturday to bring you me and speaking with Ulrich Seitz, founder of The Climate Adaptation Project, making the case that it’s time for a lot more money to flow towards climate tech adaptation.Get that and other episodes here or onAppleSpotifyYouTubeThanks for listening. We’re off to get some Strepsils. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Wicked Problems. We know when we’re outclassed so we’ll leave the jokes to the professionals. Claire Brady and Richard Delevan were joined by Ben Carey and Nick Oldridge, the co-founders of Climate Science Breakthrough. Like most really good comedy it’s deadly serious at its core - like spending your family fortune on a climate science comedy project instead of your kids. We hear about how the project came about, why they thought putting comedians like Nish Kumar and Jonathan Pie together with climate scientists like Dr. Fredi Otto and Professor Joanna Haigh might break through in new ways about the climate problems and solutions. Tell us what you think at news.wickedproblems.uk and sign up for our newsletter. You can also find us here:Claire on LinkedIn and BlueSkyRichard on BlueSky and LinkedInOldridge and Carey are about to release the fourth video in their series, but this is a chance to catch up on the ones that have been released so far and hear the story behind them. Nish Kumar and Dr. Fredi OttoKiri Pritchard McLean and Bill McGuireJonathan Pie and Prof. Joanna HaighAnd some of the other videos we referenced: Bassem Youssef + Piers MorganDr. Matthew WinningRolleigh WilliamsThanks for listening. We’ll be back soon with another episode.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Maritime shipping accounts for 3% of global emissions.Moving away from diesel for powering the 90% of global trade that happens by ship is beginning in earnest as the industry starts to decarbonise, and shipping gets included in emissions trading schemes.BAR Technologies CTO Simon Schofield talked to us about their WindWings technology, applying high-performance racing design thinking to shipping, and how could be part of the decarbonisation mix for shipping.Tell us what you think and sign up for our newsletter at news.wickedproblems.uk.Watch Simon demonstrate how the wing works, using a scale model:https://youtube.com/shorts/h-7mzdJdDlE?feature=shareFor more episodes, subscribe here or at Apple PodcastsSpotify - YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@WickedProblems-ClimateTechWe’ll be back next week with more episodes with our co-hosts Claire Brady and Richard Delevan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mark Little was a foreign correspondent for RTE, the Irish national broadcaster, before a second career in tech. He founded citizen journalism verification service Storyful, sold that to NewsCorp, was the Ireland MD for Twitter, founded an online safety startup, Kinzen, before it was acquired by Spotify, where he continues to work. Tonight he’s back on TV, presenting a fictional newscast from the future, Tomorrow Tonight - Ireland 2050. It promises to be great television - grounded in the science, not dystopia or utopia, and with some characters that writer Colin Murphy may or may not have taken verbatim from actual earnings calls of 2023 techbro billionaires. Find Mark onlineBlueSkyLinkedInHistory of the Future podcastTomorrow Tonight - Ireland 2050RTE PlayerAnd you can get this and other Wicked Problems podcasts in the usual places including:AppleSpotifyYouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbds-IoMme638pxF0OLHPfwThanks for listening. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.