Climate One

Experts have warned us that COVID-19 is just one example of climate change-related diseases on the rise. And while climate disruption, environmental health and the current pandemic may seem like three distinct problems, to those in the health and environmental justice field, that’s not the case."All of them are connected," says Adrienne Hollis of the Union of Concerned Scientists. "And the underlying cause is systemic racism.""If you want to address pandemics, and you want to address climate change, you’ve got to focus on equity," agrees Aaron Bernstein of the Harvard Chan School of Public Health. "And the solution, and the great news in some ways, is that these actions you need to take are one and the same."How are heat, lack of sanitation, and other environmental issues killing Americans in underserved communities? A conversation on what happens when climate, health, and poverty converge.Guests:Catherine Coleman Flowers, Founder, Center for Rural Enterprise and Environmental Justice; Author, Waste: One Woman’s Fight Against America’s Dirty Secret  (The New Press, 2020)Adrienne Hollis, Senior Climate Justice and Health Scientist, Union of Concerned ScientistsAaron Bernstein, Interim Director, Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment at the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health For complete show notes, visit our website. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With a new pro-science, pro-climate action administration in the White House, there are more pathways — and far greater political will — than ever before for the clean energy transition. The question is now less about what can be done to act on climate, and more about how soon. “We have the best opportunity in more than a decade now to see federal climate action through legislation,” says Leah Stokes from UC Santa Barbara. So how quickly can a new administration turn around a gutted EPA, myriad environmental law rollbacks, and a legacy of climate denial from fossil fuel companies?Guests:Michael Mann, Distinguished Professor of Atmospheric Science, Penn State UniversityLeah Stokes, Assistant Professor of Political Science, UC Santa BarbaraRelated Links:Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and AbroadThe New Climate War: The Fight to Take Back Our PlanetShort Circuiting Policy: Interest Groups and the Battle Over Clean Energy and Climate Policy in the American States Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A decade ago, a nationwide survey showed that only around twelve percent of Americans were seriously concerned about climate change. Today, public perceptions have changed. “The alarmed are between a quarter and 30% of the public,” says Edward Maibach. “That makes them the largest single segment of Americans…as their name implies, they’re alarmed about climate change.”How does understanding the perceptions of a broadly concerned public enable our leaders to create lasting change? How do climate concerns break down across political, economic, and regional divides?A conversation with Anthony Leiserowitz and Edward Maibach, recipients of the tenth annual Stephen H. Schneider Award for Outstanding Climate Science Communication. At a time when understanding climate perceptions has never been more important, Dr. Leiserowitz and Dr. Maibach have exemplified the ability to be both scientists and powerful communicators through their work on the public’s understanding of climate change, including the seminal Global Warming’s Six Americas project.Guests:Anthony Leiserowitz, Director and Senior Research Scientist, Yale Program on Climate Change CommunicationEdward Maibach, Director, George Mason University Center for Climate Change CommunicationHost: Greg DaltonRelated Links:Global Warming’s Six AmericasYale Climate Connections PodcastClimate Matters – Jim GandyClimate Matters in the NewsroomWhite House Fact Sheet: President Biden’s Executive Actions on Climate Change Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hopes and expectations are high for President Biden’s first weeks in office. His recovery plans promise to take on COVID-19, a battered economy, and a rapid clean energy transition in a way that doesn’t leave communities behind. But Navajo Nation, which until recently was home to the largest coal-fired power plant in the U.S., has been left out of economic and energy plans for a long time.“The community that has been the provider is the one that has the most homes that don't have access to electricity,” notes Wahleah Johns, Co-Founder and Director of Native Renewables. Can the incoming administration improve energy access for all Americans while phasing out fossil fuels?Guests Loretta Lynch, Former President, California Public Utilities Commission Wahleah Johns, Co-Founder & Director, Native Renewables Paula Glover, President, Alliance to Save Energy; former President and CEO, American Association of Blacks in Energy Jeremiah Baumann, Director of Federal Policy, Energy InnovationVisit our website for more information on today's episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Incoming President Biden faces an unimaginable set of challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic, a gutted economy and a nation reeling from the recent capital attack. With all of that and more on his plate, what of Biden’s plans to fight climate change? “This President-elect has shown that he is absolutely committed to addressing the issue of climate,” says former EPA Administrator Christine Todd Whitman. “Because it affects everything.” Advancing a bipartisan climate agenda will be a hard sell. But in his nearly four decades in the Senate, Biden has made friends and earned respect from his Republican peers. “That isn’t gonna fix everything, of course not,” admits former Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel. But if you start with that...there are enough Republicans in the Senate who will respond to that.”Visit climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts for more information on today's episode.Guests:Christine Todd Whitman, former Governor of New Jersey, former EPA AdministratorChuck Hagel, former U.S. Secretary of Defense; former Republican Senator from NebraskaJohn Podesta, Founder, Center for American Progress; former Hillary Clinton Campaign Chairman Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Questioning science, funding vocal climate denial groups, and encouraging the focus on personal carbon footprints are corporate America’s preferred tools for shifting the responsibility for action on climate from industry to the individual. “Companies that are very much pro-climate action, that are acting in their own operations, are mostly silent on public policy,” says Bill Weihl, former Sustainability Director at Facebook. But with more workers holding their employers accountable and the start of a departure from shareholder-first capitalism, is the role of the corporation shifting? Visit our website for more information on today's episode. Guests: Mike Toffel, Senator John Heinz Professor of Environmental Management, Harvard Business School; Founder, Climate Rising Podcast Emily Atkin, Climate Journalist, Heated Newsletter & Podcast Bill Weihl, Founder and Executive Director, ClimateVoice; Former Sustainability Director, Facebook Barbara Freese, Author, Industrial-Strength Denial: Eight Stories of Corporations Defending the Indefensible, from the Slave Trade to Climate Change Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Twenty years ago, Julia Roberts won an Oscar for her portrayal of maverick environmental activist Erin Brockovich in the film of the same name. These days, in addition to her work on water safety and toxins in communities, Brockovich has taken on the climate emergency. In her mind, the connection is fundamental. “Climate change is about too much water, not enough water, no water, drought, flooding,” Brockovich says, adding, “It’s becoming real because it's tangible, it's touchable. You're running from it, you’re breathing it. You're swimming in it. You could be drowning in it. I just think it's here.”Also, New York Times reporter Tatiana Schlossberg on how everyday choices – like deciding what to eat, wear or binge-watch – may impact the planet more than you think. And two experts on sustainable apparel uncover the hidden carbon footprint stuffed in our drawers, closets and gym bags. Visit our website for more information on today's episode. Guests: Erin Brockovich, Author, Superman's Not Coming: Our National Water Crisis and What We the People Can Do About It (Pantheon, 2020) Tatiana Schlossberg, Author, Inconspicuous Consumption: The Environmental Impact You Don't Know You Have (Grand Central Publishing, 2019) Rebecca Burgess, Founder and Director, Fibershed Amina Razvi, Executive Director, Sustainable Apparel Coalition Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

President-elect Joe Biden says he will infuse climate change into every corner of his agenda. That’s becoming evident looking at his emerging team. "You're already seeing signs from the nominees and the people they’re choosing that climate is going to be a part of every single agency," says Christy Goldfuss, Senior Vice President for Energy and Environment Policy at the Center for American Progress. But it will take more than staff buy-in to get the country to net-zero emissions. When he’s sworn in on January 20th, Biden will likely be facing a Republican-led Senate that opposes his climate goals. He’s announced an ambitious plan designed to achieve a one-hundred-percent clean economy and net-zero emissions by 2050, and is assembling a team of heavy hitters to get the job done. But he faces criticism from both sides. Republicans claim his plan is too expensive. Sunrise Movement and other progressives accuse him of not being ambitious enough. Join us for a discussion about the Biden climate agenda -- what he hopes to accomplish and what he can get done, with or without congressional support. Visit climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts for more information on today's episode. Guests: Scott Segal, Partner, Bracewell LLP Christy Goldfuss, Senior Vice President, Energy and Environment Policy, Center for American Progress Jared Blumenfeld, Secretary for Environmental Protection, California Amy Westervelt, Founder, Critical Frequency Podcast Network; Host, Drilled Podcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Maintaining a consumption-driven economy while keeping emissions down seems more and more like a pipe dream -- is it time to re-think capitalism altogether? “The only thing it requires is a massive cultural and political movement changing the rules that constrain capitalism,” says Rebecca Henderson, author of Reimagining Capitalism in a World on Fire, “but as soon as we can do that we’re done.” Short of a whole new capitalism, can the stock market be used as a tool for climate action? We may not all be managing billions in assets, but can we use our nest eggs to help finance a green economy? Visit climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts for more information on today's episode. Guests (Part 1) Rebecca Henderson, John and Natty McArthur University Professor, Harvard University Hope Jahren, Researcher, Centre for Earth Evolution and Dynamics, University of Oslo This program was originally broadcast on June 26, 2020. Guests (Part 2) Brian Deese, Managing Director, Global Head of Sustainable Investing, BlackRock Lori Keith, Portfolio Manager, Parnassus Investments Pratima Rangarajan, CEO, Oil and Gas Climate Initiative This program was originally broadcast on April 24, 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Throughout a 45-year career as an environmental regulator, Mary Nichols has been a powerful champion for climate action and cutting emissions. Having been called everything from “Trump's nemesis” to “the most influential environmental regulator of all time,” Nichols has both taken on automakers and collaborated with them. Environmentalists have cheered her moves to limit carbon emissions, while occasionally criticizing her for not doing enough for disadvantaged communities. So where does California’s climate leadership go from here, and what’s ahead for a new national climate agenda in 2021? Visit climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts for more information on today's episode. Guest: Mary Nichols Chair, California Air Resources Board This program was recorded via video on November 17, 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices