How do neighbourhoods shape economic opportunities for children? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Professor Stefanie Deluca, Johns Hopkins University, about why neighbourhoods matter for creating social mobility; some of the outcomes and challenges in her recent paper, “Creating Moves to Opportunity”; and what it takes to create more high-opportunity zones, so families don’t have to continually uproot and move.Professor Stefanie DeLuca is the James Coleman Professor of Sociology and Social Policy at the Johns Hopkins University, director of the Poverty and Inequality Research Lab, and Research Principal at Opportunity Insights at Harvard University. She is one of the foremost qualitative mixed methods researchers on housing and higher education policy. Professor DeLuca co-authored Coming of Age in the Other America, which was named an Outstanding Academic Title from the American Library Association, and won the William F. Goode Award from the American Sociological Association. Stefanie has also been awarded a National Academy of Education/Spencer Foundation Fellowship and a William T. Grant Foundation Scholars Award. She serves on a Federal Research Advisory Commission at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and was named Scholar of the Year by the National Alliance of Resident Services in Assisted and Affordable Housing.

What’s at stake for climate and nature in the current politicalenvironment? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Paul Bodnar, Bezos EarthFund, about the vital role of philanthropic capital; the mission of the BezosEarth Fund; and how its thinks about funding efforts across mitigation andadaptation as well as the Global North and Global South. Note: This episode was recorded prior to the recent US election.Paul Bodnar is the Director of Sustainable Finance, Industry, and Diplomacy at the Bezos Earth Fund. He most recently served as Global Head of Sustainable Investing at BlackRock, where he helped build the firm's $500 billion sustainable funds business. Prior to Blackrock, Paul was Chief Strategy Officer and Executive Council member at RMI (formerly Rocky Mountain Institute), where he founded the Center for Climate-Aligned Finance. Paul served in the Obama White House as Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Energy and Climate Change at the National Security Council. Prior to that, Paul served at the State Department as US lead negotiator for climate finance.

What grade does the finance industry deserve in terms of pricing climate risk? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Chief Scientist Dr. Sarah Kapnick, about the scope of NOAA’s mission; NOAA’s billion-dollar Weather and Climate Disasters dataset and what it means for weather attribution; and why NOAA itself represents a remarkable value to the US people as an argument against dismantling or privatising it.Dr. Sarah Kapnick is Chief Scientist at NOAA, which plays a critical role in understanding and predicting changes in climate, weather, oceans, and coasts. Bringing a unique mix of science and finance to NOAA, Dr. Kapnick's background includes serving as a senior climate scientist at JP Morgan Chase, a leadership role at NOAA's Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory, and an early career in investment banking.Note: This episode was recorded prior to Dr. Kapnick’s departure from NOAA.

Is ESG a “hopeless muddle”? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, about free markets and free minds; climate and ESG disclosures; the implications of Loper Bright on the Chevron Doctrine and agency authority; and the merits of financial innovation in crypto versus ESG.Commissioner Hester Peirce was appointed by President Donald Trump to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2018. Before joining the SEC, Commissioner Peirce conducted research on the regulation of financial markets at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University. She was a Senior Counsel on the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, where she advised Ranking Member Richard Shelby and other members of the Committee on securities issues. Commissioner Peirce served as counsel to SEC Commissioner Paul S. Atkins. She also worked as a Staff Attorney in the SEC’s Division of Investment Management.

Can human capital drive portfolio returns? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Professor Dan Ariely, Duke University, about what a human capital factor looks like; how incentives and the basic idea of “feeling valued “are fundamental drivers behind employee motivation; and why human capital can represent an overlooked source of alpha.Dan Ariely is the James B. Duke Professor of psychology and behavioural economics at Duke University. He is a serial entrepreneur, co-founding several companies implementing insights from behavioural science including BEwork, Genie, Irrational Labs, Timeful, and Irrational Capital. Dan has written many books, including three New York Times best-selling books: Predictably Irrational, The Upside of Irrationality, and The Honest Truth about Dishonesty. His most recent book is Misbelief: What Makes Rational People Believe Irrational Things. Irrational Capital applies workplace behavioural science, financial acumen, and deep data science to capture the powerful connection between human capital and stock performance. It is the first firm to quantitatively capture the lift that strong corporate culture has on a company’s stock price in an investable way.

What’s the role of an influencer in the effort to address climate change?Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Assaad Razzouk, CEO of Gurīn Energy, aboutwhat’s at stake in the fight for climate action, how to think about the energytransition in the context of this year’s global electoral cycle, and, ofcourse, why we need more angry clean energy people.

How is the Loan Programs Office providing unprecedented amounts of capital for clean energy innovations? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Jigar Shah, US Department of Energy Loan Programs Office Director, his $215 billion mandate in commercialising clean energy innovations, how these technologies align with US energy security goals and climate commitments, and what the multiplier effect of LPO financing could mean for private sector investment. Jigar Shah is the Director for the Loan Programs Office (LPO) at the US Department of Energy where he leads and directs the organisation's considerable loan authority within manufacturing, innovative project finance, and tribal energy. With more than 25 years of experience in clean energy, he is an expert in project finance, clean technology, and entrepreneurship, as well as a visionary leader and innovator in the field of sustainable infrastructure. Prior to joining the DOE, Jigar co-founded and served as the President of Generate Capital, the leading investment and operating platform for distributed energy storage, microgrids, fuel cells, electric vehicles, and organic waste management. He also founded SunEdison, the inventor of the modern solar-as-a-service industry, and served as the founding CEO of the Carbon War Room, a global non-profit founded by Sir Richard Branson to help entrepreneurs address climate change. Jigar is the author of Creating Climate Wealth: Unlocking the Impact Economy, a book that outlines his mission to scale the transition to a global clean energy economy.

David Morgan, COO of easyJet, discusses aviation's sustainability revolution with a focus on decarbonization, technological innovation, sustainable aviation fuel challenges, hydrogen use, UK government initiatives, aircraft lifecycle, and customer attitudes towards low-cost airlines.

Where are the tensions in the climate science community driving research and real-world policy impact? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Professor Adam Sobel, Columbia University, about what the tropics and wet bulb temperature mean in the context of climate change; how to think about the trade-offs between the applied and theoretical sides of science; and why we need to rethink the social responsibility of climate scientists.Adam Sobel is Professor at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory and Engineering School. He studies the dynamics of climate and weather phenomena, particularly in the tropics. In recent years he has become particularly interested in understanding the risks to human society from extreme weather events and climate change. He is author or co-author of over 150 peer-reviewed scientific articles; Storm Surge, a book about Hurricane Sandy; and numerous op-eds. He is also host of the Deep Convection podcast.

What will the upcoming EU elections mean for sustainable investors? Listen to Jason Mitchell discuss with Henry Foy, the FT's Brussels Bureau Chief, about June’s EU elections, why the policy agenda will likely pivot towards defence an away from the Green Deal, and how EU policymakers may try to reframe defence and security for sustainable investors.Henry Foy is the FT's Brussels Bureau Chief, leading coverage of EU affairs and managing a team of correspondents that reports on European politics and policy. He is also the lead writer of Europe Express, the FT’s agenda-setting weekday newsletter on European affairs. Previously, Henry was Moscow Bureau Chief, where he interviewed Vladimir Putin and charted his regime's descent into repression. He has also been posted in Warsaw and London. He joined the FT in 2013 from Reuters, where he was a correspondent in India.