This week: A love story about concrete. Melissa and Rebecca Dell, an industrial decarbonization expert, break down our relationship with concrete, and why it’s so dysfunctional. The problem? Making concrete – especially its key ingredient, cement – is toxic to the climate. Only two countries in the world – the US and China – produce more greenhouse gas emissions than the concrete industry as a whole.   So what do we do about this toxic relationship? Do we cut ties? Do we try to mend it? Rebecca explains concrete – and how it’s different from cement – with an amazing Rice Krispy analogy. Producer Daniel Woldorff heads to a concrete plant to see some low-carbon technology in action. And Rebecca walks us through our options for reducing carbon emissions in concrete.  Guest: Rebecca Dell directs the industry program at the ClimateWorks Foundation. She works on ways to remove carbon pollution from industries like concrete, steel and chemicals. The Big Switch is produced by Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy in partnership with Post Script Media. This episode was produced by Alexandria Herr and Daniel Woldorff. Theme music and mixing by Sean Marquand. Story editing by Anne Bailey. A special thanks to Natalie Volk, Kirsten Smith and Kyu Lee. Our executive editor is Stephen Lacey.

What does a toaster oven have to do with carbon emissions? This week, Melissa and producer Alexandria Herr dissect one to find out. Turns out carbon emissions are embedded in everything around us – from the clothes we wear to our kitchen appliances.  Melissa also talks to energy expert Chris Bataille about what it will take to decarbonize the heavy industries that produce these everyday objects.  Guest: Chris Bataille is an expert on climate and energy policy. He is an associate researcher at the Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations in Paris (IDDRI) and a lead author on the Industry chapter of the upcoming Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Report.  The Big Switch is produced by Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy in partnership with Post Script Media. This episode was produced by Alexandria Herr and Daniel Woldorff. Theme music and mixing by Sean Marquand. A special thanks to Natalie Volk, Kirsten Smith and Kyu Lee. Our executive editor is Stephen Lacey. 

We have something different today: A crossover between The Big Switch and The Carbon Copy. If you like this episode, go over to The Carbon Copy and hit subscribe.  When Covid disrupted the economy and shifted energy use, it sharply brought down economy-wide carbon emissions. Many wondered: would the pandemic-related changes to our energy system help or hurt the path to a net-zero carbon economy? Two years later, we have clearer data: a new report from the Rhodium Group on how emissions from fossil fuels have shifted since the pandemic started. In some cases, they've roared back faster than expected. Today: what the latest emissions data tells us about what has shifted -- and what hasn't -- across America's carbon-dependent economy. The Big Switch is produced by Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy in partnership with Post Script Media. This episode was produced by Jaime Kaiser and Daniel Woldorff. Theme music and mixing by Sean Marquand. A special thanks to Natalie Volk, Kirsten Smith and Kyu Lee. Our executive editor was Stephen Lacey.

Aviation is a notoriously difficult sector to decarbonize. So as Melissa plans a family trip, she wrestles with her options. Which flights emit the least carbon? How well do offsets work? Should we even be flying at all? Melissa and colleague Kirsten Smith task producer Daniel Woldorff with calling up airlines to look for answers.  Engineer Alejandra Uranga imagines airplanes in a net-zero future. Melissa and Alejandra cover electric planes, sustainable aviation fuel, hydrogen and more. Guests: Alejandra Uranga is an Assistant Professor of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering at USC. Kirsten Smith is a Research Associate at Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy. Daniel Woldorff is a producer for The Big Switch. The Big Switch is produced by Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy in partnership with Post Script Media. This episode was produced by Daniel Woldorff and Alexandria Herr. Theme music and mixing by Sean Marquand. A special thanks to Natalie Volk, Kirsten Smith and Kyu Lee. Our executive editor was Stephen Lacey.

When one of the biggest ships in the world got stuck in the Suez Canal, it threw a giant wrench into international supply chains. It exacerbated shortages of everything from semiconductors to snuggies.  Journalist Maria Gallucci explains how this overlooked sector plays an essential part in supplying – and decarbonizing – the global economy.  Lawyer and economist Aoife O’Leary covers our decarbonization tools, including new fuels, slow steaming and kites, plus the regulations to get us there. And don't forget the memes! Guests: Aiofe O’Leary is the CEO of Opportunity Green. Maria Gallucci is a clean energy reporter at Canary Media and contributes to Grist and IEEE Spectrum The Big Switch is produced by Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy in partnership with Post Script Media. This episode was produced by Alexandria Herr and Daniel Woldorff. Theme music and mixing by Sean Marquand. A special thanks to Natalie Volk, Kirsten Smith and Kyu Lee. Our executive editor was Stephen Lacey. 

Heavy trucks emit an outsize share of greenhouse gasses and toxic pollutants. But we rely on them for nearly everything we buy. What will it take to decarbonize them? We hear from staff at the Community Center for Action & Environmental Justice. They’re demanding clean air in “America’s shopping cart,” a polluted region dominated by warehouses and trucking. And Dr. Ben Sharpe of the International Council on Clean Transportation covers the technologies and policies we need to reach zero-emission trucking. Guests: Dr. Ben Sharpe is a Senior Researcher at the International Council on Clean Transportation. Anna Gonzalez is the Interim Executive Director of the Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice (CCAEJ). Faraz Rizvi is CCAEJ’s Special Projects Coordinator. The Big Switch is produced by Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy in partnership with Post Script Media. This episode was produced by Daniel Woldorff and Alexandria Herr. Theme music and mixing by Sean Marquand. A special thanks to Natalie Volk, Kirsten Smith and Kyu Lee. Our executive editor was Stephen Lacey. 

Electric autonomous vehicles shuttle us to high-tech mass transit hubs. Our fare system is contactless. We’ve already paid via a customized, equitable subscription model. All the trains and buses are on time. And we don’t have to wait in traffic. This is a world in which we can hop in a car to get somewhere, but we don’t have to. In this episode, the second in our five-part series on transportation, Dr. Giovanni Circella paints a picture of a net zero world in which public transportation improves our quality of life, while also reducing carbon emissions.  What will it take to get there? Dr. Circella and Dr. Melissa Lott talk about electrifying transit, coordinating autonomous vehicles for the public benefit, land use planning, fare pricing, and why so many in developing countries aspire to car ownership.  And we tell the story of TransMiCable, an electric cable car system in Bogotá, Columbia, and the researchers who are tracking the impact on the long commutes and air quality for residents of some of its poorest neighborhoods. Guests: Dr. Giovanni Circella directs the 3 Revolutions Future Mobility Program at UC-Davis and is a Senior Research Engineer at Georgia Tech. Dr. Olga Lucia Sarmiento is a Professor of the Department of Public Health at the School of Medicine at Universidad de los Andes. Brett Marsh is a journalist and photographer based in Oakland, CA.  The Big Switch is produced by Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy in partnership with Post Script Media. This episode was produced by Daniel Woldorff and Alexandria Herr. Theme music and mixing by Sean Marquand. A special thanks to Natalie Volk, Kirsten Smith and Kyu Lee. Our executive editor was Stephen Lacey.

In the next five episodes, we'll take a deep dive into decarbonizing the entire transportation sector -- everything from bulldozers and planes to ships and trains. In this episode we start with cars. How do we switch the world's over 1 billion fossil-fuel-powered cars to zero-carbon alternatives, and fast?  Dr. Melissa Lott explores the most promising pathway -- electrification -- with Dr. Sonia Yeh of Chalmers University. What kind of infrastructure and technology do we need to scale up electric cars? And why aren't there more electric vehicles on the roads right now?  We'll also tell the story of Tim Treuer, who put his EV to the test on 7,600-mile road trip, risking jail time in the process.  Guests: Tim Treuer, a biologist, journalist and cross-country EV adventurer. Dr. Sonia Yeh is Professor in Transport and Energy Systems in the Department of Space, Earth and Environment at Chalmer University in Gothenburg, Sweden. The Big Switch is produced by Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy in partnership with Post Script Media. This episode was produced by Daniel Woldorff and Alexandria Herr. Theme music and mixing by Sean Marquand. A special thanks to Natalie Volk, Kirsten Smith and Kyu Lee. Our executive editor was Stephen Lacey.

In the first five episodes of this show, we talked about cleaning up our electricity system—the power grid. In upcoming episodes, we're going to explain how to make that Big Switch in every other sector of the economy—everything from cars and heavy trucking to industrial heat and buildings.   It's a lot to cover, and so we need a roadmap. In this episode, we're doing just that. Our host, Dr. Melissa Lott, talks to energy system modeler Amber Mahone about what those sectors are what we need to do to decarbonize them. What are the key strategies in each one of those sectors? What are the equity implications and tradeoffs for the strategies? But first, Kirsten teams up with the producers to hijack Melissa's road trip to an energy conference. We take a peek into the hidden energy embedded in our everyday lives. Guests: Kirsten Smith of Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy and Amber Mahone of Energy and Environmental Economics. The Big Switch is produced by Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy in partnership with Post Script Media. This episode was produced by Daniel Woldorff and co-hosted by Kirsten Smith. A special thanks to Genna Morton, Artealia Gilliard, Natalie Volk and Kyu Lee. Our executive editor was Stephen Lacey.

We have a whole year of episodes coming up. In the first five episodes of The Big Switch, we talked about cleaning up our electricity system--the power grid. Next, host Dr. Melissa Lott will talk with experts about how to transform every other sector of the economy, including transportation, industry and buildings. To slow climate change, we need to transform our buildings, our homes, cars, and the economy as quickly as possible. But how do we do it right?  Subscribe to The Big Switch everywhere you find podcasts.