Political Climate

John Kerry isn’t pleased. As the world celebrates the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, the former senator and secretary of state says a profound lack of leadership is causing the United States to fall behind on climate action and clean energy innovation.In this episode of Political Climate, we speak to Secretary Kerry about his outlook on combatting climate change. We get his views on abolishing the Senate filibuster, decarbonizing the power grid, the future role of fossil fuels, American leadership (or lack thereof) on the international stage, and more.We also get an update on Kerry’s World War Zero coalition. The initiative was launched last year with a high-profile cast of founding members to mobilize mass action to combat the climate crisis. The coalition's main goal is to host more than ten million “climate conversations” in 2020 with citizens from across the political spectrum. Has the star-studded effort been successful so far?Finally, we turn to a brief interview with Tia Nelson, environmental leader, climate program director at the Outrider Foundation and daughter of former Senator and Governor Gaylord Nelson, the founder of Earth Day.Nelson was 13 years old on April 22, 1970 — the first Earth Day ever. We get her thoughts on how the environmental movement has evolved over time. Recommended reading: WaPo: John Kerry: Why I’m an optimist this Earth Day WBNS: Arnold Schwarzenegger, John Kerry, John Kasich hold town hall on climate change at Otterbein Heated: A conversation with John Kerry Isthmus: Earth Day turns 50 When the Earth Moves Film Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. The Earthx2020 Conference and Film Festival is being held virtually from April 22-27 to mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Find more information at www.earthx.org!

The 2020 election is crawling forward amid the coronavirus pandemic. Former Vice President Joe Biden has become the presumptive nominee for the Democratic Party, with Senator Bernie Sanders announcing his withdrawal from the race.With the primary settled, the next question is: can Biden win over Bernie’s climate supporters? And how much do these supporters matter?Speaking of support, clean energy stakeholders say they're in dire need of government help. Industry researchers project that the clean energy sector could lose more than a half million jobs — or 15 percent of its total workforce — in the coming months if no additional policy actions are taken by Congress.More than 106,000 workers already lost their jobs in the month of March alone, according to a new analysis by Environmental Entrepreneurs, the American Council on Renewable Energy, E4TheFuture and BW Research. In light of these numbers, will a Republican-led Senate step in to save the clean energy workforce?We discuss on this week’s episode of Political Climate.Recommended reading: Axios: Biden and Sanders vow joint climate work as part of endorsement NYT: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Has Never Spoken to Joe Biden. Here’s What She Would Say GTM: Virginia Mandates 100% Clean Power by 2045 The Atlantic: Coronavirus Killed the Policy Primary E2: 106,000 Jobs in Clean Energy Lost in March Due to COVID-19 Economic Crisis Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. The Earthx2020 Conference and Film Festival will be held virtually from April 22-27 to mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Find more information at www.earthx.org!

The coronavirus outbreak continues to loom large over the world. Across the globe, countries face major challenges as consumer demand contracts, employee payroll is cut, and capital shrinks as billions of people remain in quarantine. The combination of an economic downturn, cheap oil and gas, and global supply chain disruptions will have big consequences for clean energy markets and climate action in the U.S and abroad. But is it all bad news?In this episode, we bring you a conversation on the implications of COVID-19 for climate and clean energy with four expert voices. Drawing on data and experience, speakers weigh in on the future of sustainable finance, low-carbon technology deployment, and government stimulus efforts.This discussion was recorded earlier in the week at virtual event presented by the Atlantic Council's Global Energy Center and moderated by podcast host Julia Pyper.Joining her this episode are: Ethan Zindler, Head of Americas at Bloomberg New Energy Finance Rachel Kyte, former CEO and Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Sustainable Energy for All and Dean of The Fletcher School at Tufts University Rich Powell, executive director of the ClearPath Foundation Adnan Amin, former Director-General of the International Renewable Energy Agency and Distinguished Fellow and the Atlantic Council's Global Energy Center Recommended reading: GTM: Coronavirus Derailed COP26 Talks, But Not Europe’s Appetite for Climate Action Vox: How the Covid-19 recession could become a depression CNN: Here's what America's oil CEOs discussed with Trump Atlantic Council: COVID-19: Clean energy and climate impacts Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. The Earthx2020 Conference and Film Festival will be held virtually from April 22-27 to mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Find more information at www.earthx.org!

Climate change didn’t stop while the world turned its attention to combating the coronavirus. Will leaders seize the moment to tackle more than one crisis?The $2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act offered no explicit support for the energy sector. Will Congress use the next stimulus bill to accelerate the green economy as part of the COVID-19 recovery? If so, when and how? Or will climate friendly stimulus measures fall by the wayside for now?Plus, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced it will allow companies to break pollution laws during the pandemic and did not set a timeline to start implementing the laws again. We discuss how this compares to the crisis response of past administrations.. We end with some tips on how to weather through COVID-19 and related economic troubles, including a breakdown of the financial support available to cleantech startups under the recently passed CARES Act.Recommended reading: E&E News: Does climate change still matter in the election? The Guardian: Trump administration allows companies to break pollution laws during coronavirus pandemic Medium: A Green Stimulus to Rebuild Our Economy Wired: The Analogy Between Covid-19 and Climate Change Is Eerily Precise The Guardian: Polar ice caps melting six times faster than in 1990s Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. The Earthx2020 Conference and Film Festival will be held virtually from April 22-27 to mark the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. Find more information at www.earthx.org!

Labor groups and environmentalists have a complicated relationship.Efforts to mitigate climate change stand to create new employment opportunities in a thriving, low-carbon economy. But they also stand to eliminate many unionized jobs, particularly in the fossil fuel industry.So how can organized labor and the environmental movement work together to promote a just and sustainable society? We discuss in a candid conversation with Lee Anderson, director of government affairs at the Utility Workers Union of America, and Anna Fendley, director of regulatory and state policy at the United Steelworkers.We also explore how policymakers can support blue collar workers and expand job prospects, while dramatically cutting down carbon emissions. Does the prospect of another economic stimulus bill in response to COVID-19 present an opportunity to accelerate America's blue-green economy?This is the fourth episode of Political Climate’s monthly “Path to Zero” series, brought to you by the public policy think tank Third Way. The series explore how people are being affected by the transition to cleaner energy resources, and the economic challenges and opportunities created in the process. It examines the technologies and policies we will need to implement to drive down carbon emissions, and the politics driving this dialogue. Listen and subscribe to all “Path to Zero” episodes here!Recommended reading: Solidarity for Climate Action Politico: Energy Issues in Stimulus Limbo A Green Stimulus to Rebuild Our Economy Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.“Path to Zero” is created in partnership with the public policy think tank Third Way. Episodes air monthly on the Political Climate podcast feed. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

With cases recorded in more than 140 countries, the novel coronavirus has become a global health crisis. In the U.S., bars and offices have been closed, conferences cancelled and kids kept home from school in an attempt to slow the spread. President Trump has declared a national emergency and invoked the Defense Production Act to accelerate the virus response.So why aren’t we reacting as swiftly to climate change -- another human-propelled global catastrophe that could harm human health and wellbeing for generations to come?These threats are not the same, but they do share certain attributes. We discuss with risk and behavioral scientist Sweta Chakraborty, founder of Adapt to Thrive and co-host the live weekly radio show “Risky Behavior.”Recommended reading: NBC: Me, worry? For coronavirus, it depends on your politics GTM: For Wind and Solar Sectors, Biggest Coronavirus Risk May Be a Damaged Economy GreenBiz: COVID-19 and climate change: A healthy dose of reality London Real: Jonathan Haidt - Climate Change Ideology Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. Looking for a new activity? Challenge yourself to take on the 50 for 50 Challenge — 5 Pledges x 10 Actions = 50 Ways to Protect our Planet in honor of Earth Day's 50th anniversary. Sign up at www.earthx.org!

It's been pretty hard to miss the latest news. Coronavirus spreads! Oil prices plummet! Stock market crashes!What does all of this have to do with climate and clean energy? A lot, actually.On Monday, oil prices had their worst day since the 1991 Gulf War, falling 24 percent to around $34 per barrel. So how did we get here? And what does the combination of rock bottom oil prices and the coronavirus mean for clean energy?We break it down on this episode of Political Climate in an interview with David Livingston, senior analyst at the political risk consultancy Eurasia Group with a focus on energy and global macroeconomics.Recommended reading: E&E News: EVs, shale and Trump: 5 takeaways from the oil crash WaPo: White House likely to pursue federal aid for shale companies hit by oil shock, coronavirus downturn GTM: Coronavirus May Challenge Solar Industry’s Tax Credit Strategy Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. This April marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and there’s no better way to celebrate than at the EarthX Expo, Conference and Film Festival in Dallas, Texas. This event is for everyone, including you! Visit earthx.org to learn more and register.

Joe Biden had a super, Super Tuesday. We discuss the results and what they mean for climate in the 2020 Democratic Primary. We also touch on the sweeping Senate energy bill that could come to a vote any day now.Plus, there was another big winner this week! We share the results of our policy bracket competition from last week’s Decarb Madness episode.In the latter half of this show (26 min), we discuss how to pick the best policies for decarbonizing the U.S. economy with experts at the think tank Energy Innovation who created the policy simulator we used to evaluate last week’s policy brackets.If you haven’t heard the Decarb Madness episode yet, we recommend going back to give it a listen.Recommended reading: WaPo: Sweeping Senate Energy Bill Could Come to a Vote This Week GTM: Sweeping Senate Energy Bill Could Come to a Vote This Week Energy Innovation: A Policy Pathway To Reach U.S. Net Zero Emissions By 2050 Decarb Madness: How Would You Build a Policy Bracket to Decarbonize the Power Sector? Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. This April marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and there’s no better way to celebrate than at the EarthX Expo, Conference and Film Festival in Dallas, Texas. This event is for everyone, including you! Visit earthx.org to learn more and register.

Welcome to Decarb Madness! The policy bracket game for energy wonks who don’t want to play with our future. With March Madness just around the corner and a climate crisis closing in, Political Climate challenged four energy experts to build their ideal policy bracket for decarbonizing the electricity sector.For the third episode in our “Path to Zero” series, contestants were asked to select five federal-level policies that they think will win the day — both in terms of carbon reductions in 2050 and political feasibility.Decarb Madness 2020 features Jesse Jenkins, assistant professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering Princeton University, and Leah Stokes, assistant professor of political science at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Political Climate co-hosts Brandon Hurlbut and Shane Skelton also gave it a shot.  In round one, each player explains why they made their respective policy picks. Following that, host/referee Julia Pyper steps in to explain how each bracket ranks on emissions reductions using the Energy Policy Simulator, a computer model developed by the nonpartisan climate policy firm Energy Innovation.In round two, each contestant makes the case for why their policy bracket is the most politically and technologically feasible. And then you come in! As soon as you hear this episode, head over to the Political Climate Twitter page @poli_climate and vote for whose bracket you think is the best. We will announce the winner on our next show.Game on.Recommended reading: Policy list Jesse's policy bracket Leah's policy bracket Brandon's policy bracket Shane's policy bracket Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.“Path to Zero” is created in partnership with the public policy think tank Third Way. Episodes air monthly on the Political Climate podcast feed. Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play or wherever you get podcasts!

Is the United States positioned to lead long-term as the global energy mix continues to shift?Fossil fuels have shaped the geopolitical map over the last two centuries. Now, the rapid deployment of renewables has set in motion a global energy transition that could have profound geopolitical consequences.In this episode of Political Climate, we speak to Daniel Simmons, assistant secretary for the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, about how the U.S. Energy Department is thinking about intersection of geopolitics and cleantech.We also discussed the DOE’s new Energy Storage Grand Challenge and how the agency is deploying capital to support clean energy innovation more broadly under President Trump — and how the DOE is defining “clean energy innovation” under President Trump.Plus, we hear from Matt Myers, vice president of EarthxCapital. He’s just launched a new, bipartisan initiative with the DOE’s Office of Technology Transitions to address commercialization barriers for cleantech solutions. We’ll learn more about it. Finally, the Political Climate crew couldn’t ignore the latest news. So we also touch on this week’s fiery Democratic debate and Jeff Bezos’ new $10 billion commitment to fund climate action. Recommended reading: Washington Examiner: Bloomberg: US can't afford to ban fracking 'for awhile' GTM: What Would It Take for the US to Become an Energy Storage Manufacturing Powerhouse? Report: Bridging the U.S. Environmental Technology Gaps to Market Political Climate is produced in partnership with the USC Schwarzenegger Institute.Listen and subscribe to the Political Climate podcast via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, Google Play, Overcast or any of these other services. Find us on Twitter @Poli_Climate! Follow our hosts at @JMPyper @ShaneSkelton and @BrandonHurlbut.This episode is brought to you by the nonprofit environmental forum EarthX. This April marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, and there’s no better way to celebrate than at the EarthX Expo, Conference and Film Festival in Dallas, Texas. This event is for everyone, including you! Visit earthx.org to learn more and register.