Energy Policy Now

Advanced Energy Economy’s Leah Rubin Shen discusses energy spending priorities in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. --- In November President Biden signed into law the signature legislation of his Presidency to date, the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, also known as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. The bill includes more than $100 billion dollars in funding for clean energy technology, infrastructure and climate preparedness, making it the most significant federal commitment to clean energy and climate to date. Leah Rubin Shen, a policy director with Advanced Energy Economy, discusses spending priorities for energy-focused dollars in the infrastructure bill. Leah also explores the limitations of infrastructure bill funding, and state and federal spending priorities that AEE is advocating for. Advanced Energy Economy is a national business association that advocates for clean energy and transportation on behalf of U.S. technology and clean energy companies. Leah Rubin Shen is a policy director with Advanced Energy Economy. Related Content Leveraging Clean Energy to Alleviate Regional Water Stress https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/leveraging-clean-energy-to-alleviate-regional-water-stress/ Organized Labor Sees Promise in Transition to Clean Energy https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/organized-labor-sees-promise-in-transition-to-clean-energy/   Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Two experts on mining industry governance explore environmental and social challenges around the mining of cobalt, a critical material in EV batteries, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. --- This is the third episode in our series that explores governance challenges surrounding the transition to clean energy. The International Energy Agency forecasts that electric vehicles could account for a third of the global new car market by the end of this decade. While the prospect of a growing fleet of EVs is good news for the climate, the emergence of electric vehicles raises its own set of sustainability challenges. One area of notable concern surrounds the raw materials that are used in EV batteries, which may be sourced from regions of the world where environmental and social governance are weak. This reality runs counter to the sustainable promise of the clean energy transition and has raised concern among clean technology companies, EV manufacturers, and ESG-minded investors. David Manley and Hervé Lado of the Natural Resource Governance Institute explore the environmental and human realities surrounding the production of one such material, cobalt, which is an essential element in the lithium-ion batteries that power most electric vehicles. The majority of cobalt is produced in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, an impoverished and environmentally sensitive country that has attracted attention as demand for cobalt has grown. Manley and Lado discuss efforts to improve oversight of the cobalt value chain, and what’s potentially at stake for the clean energy transition, and economies that are dependent on raw materials production, should ESG concerns not be adequately addressed. David Manley is a senior economic analyst with the Natural Resource Governance Institute. Hervé Lado is NRGI’s West and Central Africa regional manager. Related Content Governing Net-Zero Emissions Targets https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/governing-net-zero-emissions-targets/ Governing the Promise and Peril of Emerging Climate Technologies https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/governing-the-promise-and-peril-of-emerging-climate-technologies/   Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As net zero carbon targets become commonplace, strong governance will be needed to ensure climate benefits.--- This is the second episode in a three-part series exploring governance challenges surrounding the transition to clean energy. In recent years a flood of net zero emissions targets have been set by companies, municipalities, and countries around the world. In fact, over-two thirds of the global economy is now covered by net zero targets that aim to zero out greenhouse gas emissions and slow and ideally halt the process of climate change. Yet, while the quantity of net zero targets has multiplied, the quality of many of these targets is questionable. Many targets are voluntary and, too frequently, not subject to reliable oversight. At the same time, political realities can present steep hurdles to governments that might seek to establish robust, enforceable net zero targets at the national level. Thomas Hale, associate professor in global public policy at the University of Oxford discusses the need for strong governance structures to ensure that net zero targets deliver the carbon neutrality that they promise. Hale explores what, exactly, constitutes a robust net zero target, governance frameworks for credible and enforceable targets and the hurdles, political and otherwise, to achieving robust governance. Thomas Hale is an associate professor in global public policy at the University of Oxford and visiting scholar at the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy. His work focuses on the management of transnational problems, with a focus on environmental, economic and health issues. Related Content Net-Zero Nevada: From Pledge to Action https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/net-zero-nevada-from-pledge-to-action/  Guidelines for Successful, Sustainable Nature-Based Solutions https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/guidelines-for-successful-sustainable-nature-based-solutions/  For Solar Geoengineering, Daunting Policy Questions Await https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/for-solar-geoengineering-daunting-policy-questions-await/  Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Shuchi Talati, former chief of staff of the Department of Energy’s Office of Fossil Energy & Carbon Management, discusses the need for strong governance to balance the potential benefits of carbon dioxide removal technologies with environmental and social risks. --- This episode is the first in a three-part series that will explore governance challenges surrounding the transition to clean energy.  In early April, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released its latest assessment report, which warned that the global carbon budget to keep climate warming below 1.5 degrees Celsius is quickly being exhausted, and that the use of technologies to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere has become “unavoidable” if climate damages are to be limited. The report has been followed by announcements from leading technology companies of more than $2 billion dollars in commitments to commercialize carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies.  The IPCC report, and financing commitments, point to increasing acceptance of emerging climate technologies that were once viewed as options of last resort to address climate change. In the podcast Shuchi Talati, scholar in residence with the Forum for Climate Engineering Assessment at American University, discusses the governance of these emerging climate technologies which, despite their promise, raise concerns around their potential impacts on ecosystems, economies and issues of social equity, and even over the pace of decarbonization itself.  Shuchi Talati is scholar in residence with the Forum for Climate Engineering Assessment at American University, and former chief of staff for the Office of Fossil Energy & Carbon Management at the Department of Energy. Related Content For Solar Geoengineering, Daunting Policy Questions Await https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/for-solar-geoengineering-daunting-policy-questions-await/ Guidelines for Successful, Sustainable, Nature-Based Solutions. https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/guidelines-for-successful-sustainable-nature-based-solutions/ Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Economist Lord Nicholas Stern discusses why traditional economics fail to capture the magnitude of threat presented by climate change, and how the discipline must adapt. --- In 2006 climate economist Nicholas Stern published the Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change, a report that offered the first systematic examination of the costs of addressing climate change and impacts on the global economy. The report marked a fundamental shift away from climate change being viewed primarily as an issue of science, to also being one of economics. Fifteen years later Stern looks back on that seminal report to examine how economics, and markets, have failed to grapple with the unprecedented risks posed by a changing climate, and how the profession must change to guide policy toward rapid decarbonization on a global scale. Stern’s recording took place during his visit to the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy on April 19, where he received the center’s Carnot Prize for distinguished contributions to energy policy. Nicholas Stern is IG Patel Professor of Economics and Government at the London School of Economics, and Chair of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment.  Related Content Guidelines for Successful, Sustainable, Nature-Based Solutions https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/guidelines-for-successful-sustainable-nature-based-solutions/ Supply and Demand Evolution in the Voluntary Carbon Credit Market https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/supply-and-demand-evolution-in-the-voluntary-carbon-credit-market/ The Role of Negative Emissions in Getting to Carbon Neutral https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/the-essential-role-of-negative-emissions-in-getting-to-carbon-neutral/   Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An expert in energy geopolitics discusses the war in Ukraine and its implications for European energy security and decarbonization. The episode was recorded in front of a live audience. --- Anna Mikulska, lecturer in Russian and East European Studies at the University of Pennsylvania and an expert in European energy geopolitics, discusses the history of escalating energy tensions between Russia, Ukraine and the EU prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24. In the episode, which was recorded in front of a live audience at UPenn’s Kleinman Center for Energy Policy, Mikulska explores the EU’s dependency on Russian natural gas and options for alternative sources of energy supply including LNG. She also considers the prospects for an extended period of high energy prices going forward, and how the war may alter Europe’s path toward its aggressive decarbonization targets for the end of this decade. Anna Mikulska is a lecturer in Russian and East European Studies at the University of Pennsylvania and a nonresident fellow in Energy Studies at Rice University’s Baker Institute. Related Content Climate Leader Germany Faces Challenging Exit from Coal https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/podcast/climate-leader-germany-faces-challenging-exit-from-coal/ Net-Zero Nevada: From Pledge to Action  https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/net-zero-nevada-from-pledge-to-action/ Barriers to Energy Efficiency Adoption in Low-Income Communities   https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/barriers-to-energy-efficiency-adoption-in-low-income-communities/ Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

An energy activist highlights the opportunities, and challenges on the way to clean and equitable energy in the United States. --- The energy transition that is now underway in the United States holds the promise of delivering carbon free energy by the middle of this century. Yet often overlooked is a second critical opportunity to ensure that our future energy system delivers benefits, and shares burdens, much more equitably than has been true to date.  Chandra Farley, chair of the Atlanta NAACP Environmental and Climate Justice Committee, discusses the disproportionate environmental, social and economic burdens of our fossil energy system that have fallen on communities of color and the economically disadvantaged, and efforts to ensure that the benefits and costs of clean energy are equitably shared. Chandra Farley is Chief Executive of ReSolve, a consultancy that works to strengthen the organizational foundations of grassroots advocacy, and founder of the Good Energy Project, which engages Black women in the effort to expand clean energy. She is running for a seat as a commissioner with the Georgia Public Service Commission. Related Content Barriers to Energy Efficiency Adoption in Low-Income Communities https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/barriers-to-energy-efficiency-adoption-in-low-income-communities/ Aligning Historic Preservation and Energy Efficiency https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/aligning-historic-preservation-and-energy-efficiency/   The Best Local Response to Climate Change Is a Comprehensive Efficiency Plan https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/the-best-local-response-to-climate-change-is-a-comprehensive-efficiency-plan/ Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The transition to a clean energy economy will generate millions of new jobs. Unions are working to ensure that those jobs provide a living wage. --- Dramatic changes are underway in the ways that the United States produces and consumes energy, with major implications for the country’s workforce. Along the Atlantic shore, states are racing to establish large offshore wind farms and the manufacturing supply chains to support them. Automakers in the middle of the country have committed to shifting production to electric vehicles and the federal government to supporting a nationwide EV charging network. Opportunity will continue to grow in clean energy manufacturing, infrastructure and services. A central challenge that lies ahead is to ensure that these new jobs provide secure, living wages to support families and communities as they propel the energy transition. Guest Lara Skinner is Director of the Labor Leading on Climate Initiative at Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations, which works with labor unions to actively engage in decision making around clean energy and climate policy. She discusses efforts to ensure that new jobs in the clean energy economy address both economic inequality and the need to rapidly decarbonize. Lara Skinner is Director of the Labor Leading on Climate Initiative at Cornell University’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations. For a transcript of this episode and more information, go to our website. Related Content Barriers to Energy Efficiency Adoption in Low-Income Communities https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/barriers-to-energy-efficiency-adoption-in-low-income-communities/ Leveraging Clean Energy to Alleviate Regional Water Stress https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/leveraging-clean-energy-to-alleviate-regional-water-stress/ Guidelines for Successful, Sustainable, Nature-Based Solutions https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/guidelines-for-successful-sustainable-nature-based-solutions/ Energy Policy Now is produced by The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. For all things energy policy, visit kleinmanenergy.upenn.eduSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

ProPublica's Alec MacGillis discusses his recent New Yorker magazine article on Germany’s protracted struggle to wean itself off of coal.---Germany has earned a reputation as a leader in the effort to lower greenhouse gas emissions, and today counts some of the highest rates of renewable energy in the world.Yet one of the continuing ironies of Germany’s energy transition is that the country remains very much dependent on coal-fired generation, which last year provided over a quarter of its electricity. In fact, as Germany pursues steep reductions in emissions, it also plans to continue mining and burning coal nearly to the end of the 2030s.ProPublica reporter Alec MacGillis discusses his recent New Yorker magazine article on Germany’s challenging exit from coal, and the fuel’s sustaining, and uniquely destructive relationship with German communities.MacGillis’ article, “Can Germany Show Us How to Leave Coal Behind?”, was published in the January 31, 2022 issue of The New Yorker, and on ProPublica.org.Alec MacGillis is a reporter with ProPublica. Related ContentNuclear Energy Meets Climate Change https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/nuclear-energy-meets-climate-change/ Electricity Storage and Renewables: How Investments Change as Technology Improves  https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/electricity-storage-and-renewables-how-investments-change-as-technology-improves/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Rising global LNG demand points to a strong future for U.S. LNG exports. But ESG concerns loom.  ---Over the past decade, fracking technology has driven unprecedented growth in American natural gas production. Gas now powers 40% of U.S. electricity generation, and is also the most important fuel for home heating. And the U.S. is on track to become the world’s number one exporter of liquified natural gas in 2022, as Asia and Europe compete to pay top dollar for shipments of LNG. On the face of things, the outlook couldn’t be better for U.S. gas producers. Yet, the industry’s dramatic growth coincides with an accelerating shift toward clean energy technology, growing investor ESG concerns around the use of natural gas, and political division over gas exports. Gas producers must now weigh near term market opportunity against these longer term risks.     Robert Johnston, managing director of Eurasia Group’s Energy, Climate and Resources practice, and a research scholar at Columbia University’s Center for Global Energy Policy, discusses the complex range of domestic and global dynamics that are shaping the future of the U.S. natural gas industry. Related ContentLeveraging Clean Energy to Alleviate Regional Water Stress https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/leveraging-clean-energy-to-alleviate-regional-water-stress/ Nuclear Energy Meets Climate Change https://kleinmanenergy.upenn.edu/research/publications/nuclear-energy-meets-climate-change/ See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.