The Green Blueprint

This week, we’re running a bonus episode from our friends at Environmental Defense Fund and their podcast Degrees: Real talk about planet-saving careers. Transportation is the largest single source of carbon emissions in the U.S. People who can electrify vehicle fleets are in demand — especially in school districts, where diesel emissions are causing skyrocketing rates of childhood asthma.In this episode, host Yesh Pavlik Slenk talks with the ebullient Gilbert Blue Feather Rosas, who raised millions of dollars to bring electric buses to one of America’s biggest school districts. Make sure you check other Degrees episodes about how the green jobs transformation is shaping the future. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.Are you a utility or climatetech startup looking to understand how artificial intelligence will shape your company? Come to Post Script Media’s one-day event, Transition-AI: Boston, on June 15. Our listeners get a 20% discount with the code PSPODS20.

In the nine months since the Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law, $28 billion in new manufacturing investments have been unveiled. Credit Suisse expects the IRA to support $1.7 trillion in new US manufacturing in a decade.Shalini Ramanathan of Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners is watching the space, excited about that industrial growth. She’s also eager to see a whole new category of customers – because this green industrial strategy needs new green electrons and molecules to run it. The wave of planned build-outs in US manufacturing is setting the stage for a new class of renewables designed to run those plants. And it could shift how and where projects get built.“This could really reshape our landscape,” explains Shalini. “We're all asking the question: now that we have low-cost, green power, what other sectors can we decarbonize?This week, a secondary impact of America's green manufacturing strategy: a coming boom in projects to meet that new industrial demand. We'll ask how renewables, batteries, and hydrogen could meet the moment. Are you a utility or climate tech startup looking to understand how artificial intelligence will shape your company? Come to our one-day event, Transition-AI: Boston on June 15. Our listeners get a 20% discount with the code PSPODS20.The Carbon Copy is supported by FischTank PR, a public relations, strategic messaging, and social media agency dedicated to elevating the work of climate and clean energy companies. Learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and their services: fischtankpr.com.The Carbon Copy is brought to you by Sungrow. Now in more than 150 countries, Sungrow’s solutions include inverters for utility-scale, commercial & industrial solar, plus energy storage systems. Learn more at us.sungrowpower.com.

Are you a utility or climate tech startup looking to understand how artificial intelligence will shape your company? Come to our one-day event, Transition-AI: Boston on June 15. Our listeners get a 20% discount with the code PSPODS20.Our show this week was recorded live at the Nuclear Energy Assembly in Washington, DC. It comes in three parts. First, we're asking: how do we prepare the US nuclear industry for liftoff? We'll dig into a new government strategy to bridge the gap to commercialization in nuclear, and a range of other deep decarbonization tech.Then, what does a grid saturated with renewables, storage, and new nuclear look like? What are the ways these technologies can work together?And finally, we'll look at some investment trends across clean energy: where the capital is flowing, where it's not flowing, and does ESG backlash even matter?Jigar Shah, director of the DOE’s loan programs office, and Katherine Hamilton, chair of 38 North, join Stephen Lacey on stage for a wide-ranging conversation on the future of nuclear.Full transcript hereThe Carbon Copy is supported by FischTank PR, a public relations, strategic messaging, and social media agency dedicated to elevating the work of climate and clean energy companies. Learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and their services: fischtankpr.com.The Carbon Copy is brought to you by Sungrow. Now in more than 150 countries, Sungrow’s solutions include inverters for utility-scale, commercial & industrial solar, plus energy storage systems. Learn more at us.sungrowpower.com.

Are you a utility or climate tech startup looking to understand how artificial intelligence will shape your company? Come to our one-day event, Transition-AI: Boston on June 15. Our listeners get a 20% discount with the code PSPODS20.We’re hard at work on a new season of The Big Switch podcast, which will go deep on the impact of the European energy crisis. And this week, we’re featuring an episode from last season.There’s been a pretty major shake-up in the world of transit decarbonization. Last summer, the California Air Resources Board – a state organization that regulates air quality – approved a rule mandating that by 2035, all new cars sold in California will be zero-emissions. And last month, California approved a ban on diesel by 2036 in heavy-duty transport.These rules will transform California's transportation market; and deliver some huge climate and health wins along the way. Between now and 2035, the regulation will result in 9.5 million fewer gas-powered cars on the road. California’s not alone in cracking down on gas cars – soon, as many as seventeen other states may follow suit, resulting in a wave of regulation that could change American transit forever.In this episode, Dr. Melissa Lott talks with Mary Nichols, the former Chair of the California Air Resources Board, about the history and consequences of the rule.The Carbon Copy is supported by FischTank PR, a public relations, strategic messaging, and social media agency dedicated to elevating the work of climate and clean energy companies. Learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and their services: fischtankpr.com.The Carbon Copy is brought to you by Sungrow. Now in more than 150 countries, Sungrow’s solutions include inverters for utility-scale, commercial & industrial solar, plus energy storage systems. Learn more at us.sungrowpower.com.

Over the last two years, we’ve created the foundation for a green industrial awakening in America — thanks to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the CHIPS and Science Act, and the Inflation Reduction Act. Collectively, they will leverage hundreds of billions of dollars to support domestic producers.The green industrial framework is not new, but the policy levers are more powerful than ever. So what makes America’s industrial strategy 2.0 different from the Obama years? What lessons have been learned about what worked and what didn't? That is what we're unpacking this week, live from the Prelude Climate Summit.We’re joined by Katherine Hamilton, chair of 38 North; Jigar Shah, director of the Department of Energy’s loan programs office; and Sonia Aggarwal, CEO of Energy Innovation and a former senior advisor to the president.The Carbon Copy is supported by FischTank PR, a public relations, strategic messaging, and social media agency dedicated to elevating the work of climate and clean energy companies. Learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and their services: fischtankpr.com.The Carbon Copy is brought to you by Sungrow. Now in more than 150 countries, Sungrow’s solutions include inverters for utility-scale, commercial & industrial solar, plus energy storage systems. Learn more at us.sungrowpower.com.

The landscape for peaker power plants in New York is changing. Over the next two years, dozens of aging oil- and gas-fired plants will be phased out around New York City, thanks to stronger air quality rules and the state’s climate law. Under the rules, some of National Grid's peaking generation will shut down permanently, and some will steadily ramp down.The plan to overhaul these plants is part of National Grid's Northeast clean energy vision – which will create hubs of clean energy projects built with specific local needs in mind. The goal is to make communities the "energy capitals" of a decarbonized grid.So what will these hubs look like? In this episode, Will Hazelip, president of National Grid Ventures for the US Northeast, outlines the high stakes for the utility – and the communities it serves. Will talks with Stephen Lacey about clean energy projects underway, the technology trends guiding investments, and the plan to maximize the local economic impact.Learn more about National Grid’s efforts to build the clean energy capitals of tomorrow. There, you'll find details about offshore wind, batteries, renewables, and transmission.

Around the US, cities are passing laws to phase fossil gas out of buildings. But the culinary industry is pushing back, saying that gas bans hurt chefs and restaurant owners. This week, the California Restaurant Association successfully won a lawsuit challenging Berkeley's pioneering gas ban.Chris Galarza is on a mission to show chefs that industrial induction cooking is far superior to gas. He’s the founder of Forward Dining Solutions, a company focused on kitchen electrification. Chris is also the head chef at Chatham University’s Eden Hall campus, where all cooking is electric.Journalist Miles O’Brien interviewed Chef Galarza as part of his new NOVA documentary airing this month, called Chasing Carbon Zero. This week: the story of one chef's quest to bring induction cooking to commercial and industrial kitchens around the country. We talk with Miles about what he found in that electric kitchen at Chatham University – and why Chef Galarza thinks induction will soon dominate, even with challenges from the restaurant lobby.In the second half of the episode, we'll talk about the bigger shifts in broadcast journalism around telling the climate story. Miles is the science correspondent at the PBS NewsHour and a former CNN anchor who has shifted his journalistic focus toward climate solutions. Can TV news rise to the challenge?The Carbon Copy is supported by FischTank PR, a public relations, strategic messaging, and social media agency dedicated to elevating the work of climate and clean energy companies. Learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and their services: fischtankpr.com.The Carbon Copy is brought to you by Sungrow. Now in more than 150 countries, Sungrow’s solutions include inverters for utility-scale, commercial & industrial solar, plus energy storage systems. Learn more at us.sungrowpower.com.

We're sharing an episode of a podcast we love, Drilled from our friends over at Critical Frequency. Four years ago, the Drilled podcast asked a question that changed how people thought about climate stories: What if we stopped acting like the climate crisis was inevitable and instead treated it like it truly is… the crime of the century? Now, the original true crime podcast about climate change is back with a new season all about the opportunistic oil industry.The story is packed with high stakes court cases, intrepid journalists, and a whole lot of intrigue, set in the world's largest oil boom town. Listen to the new season of Drilled.

Up until six months ago, artificial intelligence might not have squeaked into the top five areas of climate tech for most people.But the Cambrian explosion of large language models – led by ChatGPT – has suddenly hooked hundreds of millions of users, offered mind-boggling creative capabilities that have surprised almost everyone, and kicked off an AI arms race in the tech world.What are the most compelling applications for AI in energy? This week, we feature a live conversation with Priya Donti, MIT professor and executive director of Climate Change AI; Amy Francetic, managing general partner at Buoyant Ventures; and Jesse Morris, CEO of the Energy Web Foundation. In this episode, recorded at Greentown Labs, we explore the wide range of applications for grid modeling, renewable energy integration, research & development, and product development. We also stretch beyond AI and talk about the wider digital layer that is fundamental to building and maintaining an increasingly electric, distributed energy system. You can also watch the conversation on video.This live episode is brought to you by Nexamp. Nexamp is leading the transformation to the new energy economy with proven solar and energy storage solutions that make clean energy more accessible for its customers and partners. Visit nexamp.com to learn more.

In five years, we've tripled the amount of solar capacity connected to America's grid. Wind capacity has grown 60% in the last 5 years. And in just the last year alone, battery capacity has doubled.But there’s also a surge in opposition to local projects. According to the Sabin Center for Climate Law at Columbia University, there are now 121 local policies that restrict or outright ban wind and solar in 31 states – a nearly 18% increase from 2021. What’s causing it?The opposition is coming in many different forms. In this episode, we'll focus on two of them: the coordinated spread of disinformation in local Facebook groups, and dark money going to news websites that are protecting utility political power.We’ll talk with Michael Thomas, author of the Distilled newsletter, who embedded himself with dozens of local Facebook groups devoted to fighting renewables. And we’ll also speak with Miranda Green, director of investigations at Floodlight, about the coordination of bad information spread on Facebook. Plus, she’ll tell the story of how her team uncovered a new method of influence peddling: utilities propping up news sites that cut down critics.The Carbon Copy is supported by FischTank PR, a public relations, strategic messaging, and social media agency dedicated to elevating the work of climate and clean energy companies. Learn more about FischTank’s approach to cleantech and their services: fischtankpr.com.The Carbon Copy is brought to you by Sungrow. Now in more than 150 countries, Sungrow’s solutions include inverters for utility-scale, commercial & industrial solar, plus energy storage systems. Learn more at us.sungrowpower.com.