This week: what one entrepreneur's story tells us about the migration of talent from tech to climate.Jason Jacobs is the founder of My Climate Journey, a podcast, newsletter, and slack room that brings together a high-level group of people who are dedicating their careers to addressing climate change.Co-host Shayle Kann talks with Jason about his own journey -- and about what his story tells us about the shift underway in the world of tech. The Interchange is sponsored by Viking Cold Solutions, a leader in thermal storage for refrigerated warehouses, grocery store freezers, and restaurants around the globe. Find out how thermal storage can benefit your facility.We’re also sponsored by NEXTracker. NEXTracker has more than 30 gigawatts of resilient and intelligent solar tracking systems across six continents. Optimize your solar power plant. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The 100% renewable energy future doesn’t start with a country, state or region. It starts with a city. One power plant in a city, in fact. In Glendale, California.Glendale is a city of 200,000 people just north of Los Angeles. And in 2014, the was in a tricky spot. The city’s natural gas plant was old. The City Council faced a decision that would impact the city for decades to come: revamp the 252-megawatt gas plant, or find local alternatives?After modeling many different types of local resources, the city found the perfect mix: 75 megawatts of utility-scale storage; 15 megawatts of solar, efficiency and demand response; and 93 megawatts of Wärtsilä engines for backup reliability. It saved the city millions of dollars.“And it's just a huge win...and really, an important model for the future of energy,” says David Millar a resource planning consultant at Ascend Analytics, who helped model Glendale’s energy system. In this episode, produced in collaboration with Wärtsilä, we look at the hidden hero of the 100% renewable future: power systems modeling.This is the second in a three-part series produced in collaboration with Wärtsilä. You can listen to part one here.As cities, states and countries make tough choices about cleaning up their power systems, they need to rely on sophisticated models. We’ll look at the experience of Glendale. And then turn to Joe Ferrari, the general manager for utility market development at Wärtsilä North America. Joe is an expert on how utilities are planning for the 100% renewable energy future.“The technology is there. It's just understanding how to put all the pieces together,” explains Ferrari.Wärtsilä creates smart, flexible power technologies to enable a cleaner grid and put the world on a path to 100% renewable energy. They’re helping clients worldwide meet their clean energy goals in an efficient and cost-effective way. Find out more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, we are talking about artificial intelligence, machine learning, and many ways they can decarbonize the economy.From optimizing buildings to modeling new industrial processes to better managing the grid, AI and machine learning are core to many technology strategies for addressing climate change.So how, exactly, will they be implemented? And what problems can they solve?With us is Priya Donti, a PHD student at Carnegie Mellon University. Her work is focused on machine learning, grid systems and climate change. She is also the co-chair of Climate Change AI, a group of academics and practitioners looking at machine learning as a decarbonization tool.Want to share your opinion about the topic? Let us know on Twitter. Follow @InterchangeShow, @shaylekann & @stphn_lacey and send comments about the show.This podcast is brought to you by Fronius. Now, Fronius gives you more control over your solar energy than ever before with its versatile hybrid inverter, the Primo GEN24 PLUS. Whether you’re storing solar power, integrating energy storage or looking for backup power, the Primo GEN24 PLUS has you covered. Find out more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week: predictions for the future of home solar and batteries.Big rooftop solar installers are competing with the largest utility-scale plants in terms of yearly deployed capacity.Batteries are making their way onto more installations, opening up new advancements in software and power electronics.Tesla finally says it’s making progress on the solar roof.Meanwhile, extreme weather, wildfires and power shutoffs in California are providing a new entry point for consumers. What does it all amount to? In this episode, we have a conversation with Barry Cinnamon, the CEO of Cinnamon Solar.Barry has been installing solar for nearly 20 years. He knows the on-the-ground trends and where they fit into the broader market picture. He regularly writes about the industry on Greentech Media. Shayle Kann and Stephen Lacey sit down with Barry to talk battery applications, home control, EV charging, Tesla’s solar roof, and more.Read along with us:Greentech Media: 10 Rooftop Solar and Storage Predictions for the Next DecadeGreentech Media: 10 Mistakes I’ve Made Selling and Installing Battery Storage SystemMercury News: Why Every House in California Will Have Solar PowerListen to Barry’s podcast: The Energy ShowWant to share your opinion about the topic? Let us know on Twitter. Follow @InterchangeShow, @shaylekann & @stphn_lacey and send comments about the show.This podcast is brought to you by Fronius. Now, Fronius gives you more control over your solar energy than ever before with its versatile hybrid inverter, the Primo GEN24 PLUS. Whether you’re storing solar power, integrating energy storage or looking for backup power, the Primo GEN24 PLUS has you covered. Find out more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A lot of companies and governments are committing to 100% renewable energy. But a target of that scope without considering time of use isn’t technically or economically optimal.So how do we get 24/7 renewables for offices, data centers, municipal buildings, cities, and eventually countries?Calculating renewables consumption on an annual basis isn’t sufficient. If we really want to make them an effective decarbonization tool, we need to match them to real-time demand. And there are a lot of ways to do it. In the last few months, we’ve seen examples of large corporations taking the challenge head on. We’ve also seen the negative consequences for a city when it failed to account for time of use.Dr. Melissa Lott, a senior research scholar at Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy, joins co-host Shayle Kann for a deep dive into 24/7 renewables.Want to share your opinion about the topic? Let us know on Twitter. Follow @InterchangeShow, @shaylekann & @stphn_lacey and send comments about the show.This podcast is brought to you by Fronius. Now, Fronius gives you more control over your solar energy than ever before with its versatile hybrid inverter, the Primo GEN24 PLUS. Whether you’re storing solar power, integrating energy storage or looking for backup power, the Primo GEN24 PLUS has you covered. Find out more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

“Climatetech” is suddenly the hot new thing in venture capital. For years now, venture investors have stayed away from the cleantech category, a hangover from the Solyndra days that we have thoroughly documented on The Interchange.But we appear to be in a new phase of interest. Prominent investors are publicly declaring their push into the space. Influential voices in tech are calling on more investors to do the same -- including Kara Swisher, who wrote a persuasive piece in The New York Times last week. And now startups of all kinds are getting a second look. So. What’s going on? And have investors internalized the lessons from the previous investment wave?With us to weigh in on those questions is returning guest Abe Yokell. Abe is a managing partner at Congruent Ventures. Co-host Shayle Kann, a managing director at Energy Impact Partners, sets up the trend. Then Shayle and Abe dissect lessons from cleantech venture capital 1.0.The basis of this conversation came from Shayle’s tweet. Read the responses and add your thoughts.Want to share your opinion about the topic? Let us know on Twitter. Follow @InterchangeShow, @shaylekann & @stphn_lacey and send comments about the show.This podcast is brought to you by Fronius. Now, Fronius gives you more control over your solar energy than ever before with its versatile hybrid inverter, the Primo GEN24 PLUS. Whether you’re storing solar power, integrating energy storage or looking for backup power, the Primo GEN24 PLUS has you covered. Find out more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Less than one percent of all hydrogen produced today comes from renewables. Is that about to change?The vice president of Siemens Middle East just called green hydrogen the “new oil” in the coming decades. A lot of big industrial companies and oil majors are taking another serious look at hydrogen. Why?In an era of extremely cheap renewables that are increasingly being curtailed, hydrogen production could finally be an attractive use. There are emerging regulatory pressures on existing hydrogen production.This week, we talk with Ben Gallagher, an expert on emerging tech at Wood Mackenzie. He’s the author of a new piece of research on the market. Ben will help us understand what’s different about today’s hydrogen hype. Want to share your opinion about the topic? Let us know on Twitter. Follow @InterchangeShow, @shaylekann & @stphn_lacey and send comments about the show.This podcast is brought to you by Fronius. Now, Fronius gives you more control over your solar energy than ever before with its versatile hybrid inverter, the Primo GEN24 PLUS. Whether you’re storing solar power, integrating energy storage, or looking for back-up power, the Primo GEN24 PLUS has you covered. Find out more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’re undergoing some great changes here on The Interchange! We’re bringing on a new producer and we’re going to be featuring new voices that will help us tackle the energy transition in new and compelling ways. So while we reorient ourselves, we are bringing you an episode from 2018 called “8 bets about the future.” We debated and bet on a bunch of different scenarios for the coming decades.This is one of our favorite shows. It’s a good one to bring up from the archives as we prepare ourselves for the decade ahead.The bets we discuss:Bet #1: Bug will control machines with her voice more than with her keyboard.Bet #2: Bug will never personally drive a car.Bet #3: By the time Bug buys her first home, especially if she’s in an urban environment, her surroundings will transformed. Bet #4: By the time Bug shops for her own groceries, >20% of her produce will be grown indoorsBet #5: In Bug’s first home of her own, more than half of her electricity load will dynamically respond to grid or price signalsBet #6: By the time Bug reaches 30 (in the year 2050), electricity’s market share of final energy consumption will more than double.Bet #7: More than 50% of Bug’s electricity, as represented by the national breakdown, will come from renewables by the time she’s a sophomore in high school.Bet #8 : Bug will live over 200 years, and for most of her life, electricity will be her only food.Want to share your opinion about these predictions? Let us know on Twitter. Follow @InterchangeShow, @shaylekann & @stphn_lacey and send comments about the show.This podcast is brought to you by Fronius. Now, Fronius gives you more control over your solar energy than ever before with its versatile hybrid inverter, the Primo GEN24 PLUS. Whether you’re storing solar power, integrating energy storage, or looking for back-up power, the Primo GEN24 PLUS has you covered. Find out more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We’re now in the 2020s. Many of the tropes about this era from films and literature may not have come true, but there’s a lot happening around us that does feel futuristic.And this week, we are offering up proof that we are living in the energy future — right now. Shayle and Stephen are each going to pick a use of technology that once seemed futuristic, but is now a reality.We’re also going to choose a technology that we thought would arrive but now, but is still seemingly off into the future.What’s your pick? Let us know on Twitter. Follow @InterchangeShow, @shaylekann & @stphn_lacey and send comments about the show.This podcast is brought to you by Fronius. Now, Fronius gives you more control over your solar energy than ever before with its versatile hybrid inverter, the Primo GEN24 PLUS. Whether you’re storing solar power, integrating energy storage, or looking for back-up power, the Primo GEN24 PLUS has you covered. Find out more.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This show has a very simple mission: break down the complexity of the global energy transition in a clear way.Whether that’s digging through reports, concepts, acronyms, business deals, or trends, we are constantly trying to make these topics accessible, yet wonky. Some of our most popular episodes of 2019 featured guests who were particularly good at delivering on that mission. So we’re going to serve up some snippets of those conversations.In this episode, we'll hear from:Dr. Leah Stokes from our July episode on the politics of the Green New Deal.Futurist Ramez Naam on the exponential trends disrupting energy.Analyst Adam James on the promise of aggregated distributed energy resources.Happy new year! Please rate and review us as a gesture of support to close out the year. It’s very helpful for other people who are just finding the show.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.