Surveys show that Americans on both sides of the political spectrum support policies to combat climate change, but implementation is challenging. The episode explores the influence of media, political leaders, and public opinion on climate change beliefs. It also delves into the partisan divide, challenges of convincing Republicans, and the importance of clean energy policies and economic benefits in gaining public support.

Climate change can be confusing, and there’s so much to know. That’s why we’re back with a third season of TILclimate, bringing you new episodes that explain the basics, like why exactly is sea level rising, how climate change affects our national security, how can soils and trees be part of the solution, and so much more. All with real scientists and experts who can give you the straight story, in about ten minutes, jargon-free.

Is it too late to prevent climate change? Are the scary predictions that we hear about inevitable? In this episode of TILclimate (Today I Learned Climate), MIT Prof. Noelle Selin joins host Laur Hesse Fisher to answer these questions. They explore what change is predictable, explain what climate goals like 1.5 C mean, and give insight to what it will take in order to achieve them.Prof. Noelle Selin is Associate Professor in the Institute for Data, Systems and Society and in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences. She also serves as the Director of MIT's Technology and Policy Program. Her research uses modeling and analysis to inform sustainability decision-making, focusing on issues involving air pollution, climate change and hazardous substances such as mercury.For more episodes of TILclimate by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative, visit tilclimate.mit.edu. CreditsLaur Hesse Fisher, Host and ProducerDavid Lishansky, Editor and ProducerAaron Krol, Associate ProducerSabrina Gaitan, Student Production AssistantMusic by Blue Dot SessionsArtwork by Aaron Krol Produced by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Technologies like solar panels and batteries help us slow down climate change, but they’re not inherently perfect. In this episode of TILclimate (Today I Learned Climate), Suzanne Greene of the MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics and the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative sits down with host Laur Hesse Fisher to help us navigate how to massively scale up clean tech while making a conscious and dedicated effort to ensure people’s rights, health, and safety.Suzanne Greene manages the Sustainable Supply Chains initiative at the MIT Center for Transportation & Logistics and is the lead on Metals, Minerals, and the Environment program at the Environmental Solutions Initiative. She collaborates with industry and stakeholders to develop new methods to calculate, report and offset carbon emissions, improving our understanding of the climate impact of products we use every day.For more episodes of TILclimate by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative, visit tilclimate.mit.edu. CreditsLaur Hesse Fisher, Host and ProducerDavid Lishansky, Editor and ProducerAaron Krol, Associate ProducerSabrina Gaitan, Student Production AssistantMusic by Blue Dot SessionsArtwork by Aaron KrolProduced by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Professor Dennis Whyte, Director of the MIT Plasma Science and Fusion Center, discusses fusion energy in the season finale. Topics include the potential of fusion energy, challenges in achieving high temperatures, transformation of matter at extreme temperatures, challenges of producing fusion energy, and commercializing fusion energy.

This season, we’ve talked about alternative energy sources that don’t emit carbon dioxide -- but what if there was a way to continue using fossil fuels for energy without emitting CO2 into the atmosphere? In this episode of TILclimate (Today I Learned Climate), Dr. Howard Herzog and Professor Brad Hager sit down with host Laur Hesse Fisher to talk about capturing, using, and storing carbon emissions, and how it fits into a clean energy future.Howard Herzog is a Senior Research Engineer in the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI), where he has researched combating greenhouse gas emissions for over 30 years. He was also a Coordinating Lead Author for the IPCC Special Report on Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage and a co-author on the MIT Future of Coal Study.Brad Hager is the Cecil and Ida Green Professor of Earth Sciences in the MIT Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences (EAPS). He is also the co-director of the MIT Energy Initiative’s Low Carbon Energy Center on Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage.Season two of TILclimate focuses on our global energy system, its relationship to climate change, and what our options are for keeping the lights on while creating a clean energy future. We're partnering with the MIT Energy Initiative, which will air longer interviews with each guest to take a deeper dive into these topics.CreditsLaur Hesse Fisher, Host and ProducerDavid Lishansky, Editor and ProducerJessie Hendricks, Graduate Student WriterAaron Krol, Contributing WriterRuby Wincele, Student Production AssistantCecilia Bolon, Student Production AssistantSkyler Jones, Student Production AssistantMusic by Blue Dot SessionsArtwork by Aaron Krol Produced by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

This podcast explores the controversial but mature technology of nuclear power as a clean energy source. It delves into the advantages and concerns of nuclear energy, including managing nuclear waste, preventing accidents, and addressing health and safety impacts. The aftermath of a nuclear power plant accident and the impact of evacuation is also discussed. The podcast highlights the role of nuclear power in providing backup energy and emphasizes the need for a diverse low carbon energy portfolio.

We hear a lot about technologies that produce carbon-free energy, but what about actually using less energy to begin with? In this episode of TILclimate (Today I Learned Climate), Harvey Michaels, lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of Management, joins host Laur Hesse Fisher to explore the three ways that energy efficiency can help us reduce carbon emissions.Harvey Michaels, an MIT alumnus now lecturing at the MIT Sloan School of Management, researches energy management and efficiency and smart-grid-related opportunities to mitigate climate change. He is a member of Future of the Grid at the MIT Energy Initiative, Efficiency Forward at the Sloan Sustainability Initiative, and Project Faculty for Energy Democracy at the MIT Media Lab. Prior to joining MIT, Harvey Michaels worked at energy efficiency companies Xenergy and Aclara Software.Season two of TILclimate focuses on our global energy system, its relationship to climate change, and what our options are for keeping the lights on while creating a clean energy future. We're partnering with the MIT Energy Initiative, which will air longer interviews with each guest to take a deeper dive into these topics.For more episodes of TILclimate by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative, visit tilclimate.mit.eduFor related energy podcasts from the MIT Energy Initiative, visit:http://energy.mit.edu/podcast/For a list of U.S. energy efficiency incentives for by state, visit: https://www.dsireusa.org/Check out this case study on the Bullitt Center in Seattle, which achieved a certification called the Living Building Challenge. The building is so energy efficient, the solar panels on its roof generate more electricity than the building needs:http://www.bullittcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/living-proof-bullitt-center-case-study.pdfWant to know how energy efficient your lightbulbs are?  Check out this comparison: https://www.energy.gov/energysaver/save-electricity-and-fuel/lighting-choices-save-you-money/how-energy-efficient-lightHere is a resource comparing the cost to fuel an electric car versus a gasoline car:https://www.energy.gov/articles/egallon-how-much-cheaper-it-drive-electricityCreditsLaur Hesse Fisher, Host and ProducerDavid Lishansky, Editor and ProducerJessie Hendricks, Graduate Student WriterAaron Krol, Contributing WriterDarya Guettler, Student Production AssistantMusic by Blue Dot SessionsArtwork by Aaron KrolProduced by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

What will it take to generate the electricity our society needs, without generating carbon emissions? In this episode of TILclimate (Today I Learned Climate), Dr. Magdalena Klemun at the MIT Institute for Data, Systems and Society joins host Laur Hesse Fisher to begin exploring this question, starting with wind and solar power. What exactly are wind and solar power? What challenges do we currently face when trying to use wind and solar to generate most of our electricity? What’s the role of energy storage, and what could our future zero-carbon energy mix look like? Dr. Magdalena Klemun, a postdoctoral associate at the Trancik Lab at the MIT Institute for Data, Systems and Society, works on understanding how the economic and environmental performance of technologies evolve in response to different innovation efforts, with an emphasis on the cost evolution of photovoltaic systems and nuclear power plants, and on the environmental performance evolution of natural gas technologies. She has degrees from MIT, Columbia University, and Vienna University of Technology.TILclimate is produced by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative.Season two of TILclimate focuses on our global energy system, its relationship to climate change, and what our options are for keeping the lights on while creating a clean energy future. We're partnering with the MIT Energy Initiative, which will air longer interviews with each guest to take a deeper dive into these topics.For more episodes of TILclimate by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative, visit tilclimate.mit.eduFor related podcasts from the MIT Energy Initiative, visit:Energy technology evolution: http://energy.mit.edu/podcast/21Firm low-carbon energy resources: http://energy.mit.edu/podcast/firm-low-carbon-energy-resources/Batteries & storage: http://energy.mit.edu/podcast/batteries-and-storage/Game-changing solar: http://energy.mit.edu/podcast/game-changing-solar/For more information on the world’s current energy breakdown, visit: https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics?country=WORLD&fuel=Energy%20supply&indicator=Total%20primary%20energy%20supply%20(TPES)%20by%20sourceFor the full break-down of where the US gets its energy:https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/us-energy-facts/Check out this selection of Dr. Klemun’s research:Mitigating Methane Emissions of Natural Gas: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ab2577/pdfIntersection between Emissions Reductions and Technological Innovation in Wind and Solar:http://energy.mit.edu/publication/technology-improvement-and-emissions-reductions-as-mutually-reinforcing-efforts/For a more in-depth analysis of storage requirements for decarbonization, check out this study:https://www.cell.com/joule/fulltext/S2542-4351(19)30300-9For a closer look at potential low-carbon energy mixes for future decarbonization, check out this study: https://www.cell.com/joule/fulltext/S2542-4351(18)30386-6CreditsLaur Hesse Fisher, Host and ProducerDavid Lishansky, Editor and ProducerJessie Hendricks, Graduate Student WriterDarya Guettler, Student Production AssistantMusic by Blue Dot SessionsArtwork by Aaron KrolProduced by the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

This podcast explores the distinction between energy and electricity, emphasizing that energy encompasses different forms while electricity is a specific type. It also discusses the various sectors that consume energy, strategies to reduce CO2 emissions, and the concept of generating electricity without CO2 emissions.