Climate One

“It’s essential for China to be on a low emissions growth pattern,” said Jian Lin, Chairman of The China Sustainable Energy Program. China’s cities are growing at a breakneck pace and city planners are struggling to keep up, “we are racing against time,” said Lin, “people just don’t wait until you figure out how to solve a sustainable design.” Ellen Lou, Director of Urban Design and Planning at SOM, says that the money the Chinese government spent on building out transit infrastructure “is one of the best things that they have done.” The question, she said, is “how do you make higher density livable?” Two experts discuss China’s new cities and sustainable development. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Coastal cities “are facing an existential threat that we are not prepared to deal with,” said Gabriel Metcalf, the Executive Director of San Francisco Planning and Urban Research Association (SPUR). The California Bay Area is wrestling with a challenge as it tries to develop sustainably to accommodate a growing population in a warming world. One way to deal with population rise and reduce emissions is to create “zones of high density” says Alex Mehran Jr., Senior VP and General Manager at Sunset Development. Carl Shannon, Managing Director at Tishman Speyer says “you have to find the right balance of economic desire and political will” to develop high density zones in traditionally suburban environments. The experts agree that the key to sustainable growth in the Bay Area is rebuilding for a more walkable and livable urban environment. Three leaders in sustainable building and development discuss Bay Area development goals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“We are already paying significant economic costs” of climate disruption and they are “only going to increase,” says democratic strategist Chris Lehane. Republican strategist Steve Schmidt agrees that climate change is an economic concern but says it has to be addressed in a low cost fashion. “You need to grow the economy in order to protect the environment,” says Schmidt, “the fossil fuel economy and the energy companies have lifted more people out of poverty more than any other industry in the history of the world ever.” Lehane argues that “it has been the U.S. that has lead on global issues” and it is the U.S. that should lead in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Two seasoned political veterans discuss Keystone XL, the fossil fuel economy, and bridging the partisan divide on climate change. This program was recorded in front of a live audience at The Commonwealth Club of California on March 19, 2013 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

"If we do not take the rational approach to this problem [of climate disruption] we are all facing really catastrophic impacts," said Ezra Rapport, Executive Director of the Association of Bay Area Governments. As the world warms Bay Area agencies are racing the clock to develop adaptation strategies to identify and manage risks. But with complicated and widely variable climate models it can be hard to agree on the numbers. Melanie Nutter, Director of the San Francisco Department of the Environment explained that “we as a city [San Francisco] don’t yet have an agreed upon risk scenario.” This is because “we are a very diverse region…there is no one dominant player,” said R. Zachary Wasserman, Chair of the Bay Conservation and Development Commission, “we’re going to have to figure out how to do this together.” Leaders of Bay Area agencies discuss strategies to protect our built environment and adapt to challenges in the future. This program was recorded in front of a live audience at The Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco on March 18, 2013 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“The Bay Area will be here 200 years from now. It will look different. There will be some things that have changed…but you’re going to be here. Miami won’t be here 200 years from now,” said John Englander, author of High Tide on Main Street. Englander discusses how sea levels are rising putting coastal communities at risk for flooding, larger storm surges, and erosion. Drought, superstores and other extreme weather events hit the U.S. hard in 2012. “We are seeing more extreme weather, and we likely will continue to see more extreme weather, and not only that but it will probably last longer,” says Angela Fritz, an Atmospheric Scientist at Weather Underground. A conversation on the impacts of climate change on communities in a warming world. This program was recorded in front of a live audience at The Commonwealth Club of California March 18, 2013 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

No private investor in the world would put money into General Motors when it was going bankrupt, says former GM CEO Ed Whitacre. “The government did exactly the right thing” bailing out the company. The politically charged electric Chevy Volt made headlines during Whitacre’s tenure at GM, but in spite of the political hits the car took, Whitacre believed and still believes that “there’s a real future for electric vehicles.” To Whitacre, the Chevy Volt is an example of “a responsible corporation attempting to do the right thing and explore new technology.” As American manufacturing moves forward Whitacre believes we need to accept that “it’s a global economy” and adapt to it. A conversation with a global CEO on General Motors about his role in the 2009 bailout and the state of American manufacturing. This program was recorded in front of a live audience at The Commonwealth Club of California on March 12, 2013 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As of 2013 car sharing has over a million participants in North America, says Susan Shaheen, Co-Director of the Transportation Sustainability Research Center at UC Berkeley. Are car sharing and ride sharing finally going mainstream? Panelists cite benefits such as reduced congestion and emissions. Certain car sharing startups like Lyft even give members the chance to earn some income on a car that might otherwise be sitting idle, says Kristin Sverchek, Head of Public Policy at Lyft and Zimride. To Sunil Paul, CEO of Sidecar, safety and trust are key to the ride sharing model, with 71% of Sidecar users claiming they feel safer using Sidecar than a cab. But hurdles are everywhere for this new business model and Rick Hutchinson, CEO of City Car Share, points out that innovative ideas are often hindered by slow moving insurance regulations and public policy. A conversation on the new mobility society. This program was recorded in front of a live audience at The Commonwealth Club of California on March 5, 2013 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

“The distribution centers of the future are our closets and garages,” says Andy Ruben, co-founder of sharing start-up Yerdle. Entrepreneurs like Ruben are tapping into social media circles as a way to connect members to a wealth of sharing options. “Data, in many ways, is the gateway drug to the sharing economy,” says Lisa Gansky, Author of “The Mesh”. Other entrepreneurs like Billy Parish, Co-Founder and President of Solar Mosaic, are “unlocking the ability of individuals to participate in the investment process.” Crowdfunding seems to be the next wave of the sharing economy with opportunities ranging from peer-to-peer investment and Solar Mosaic’s own solar investment projects. A conversation on the exciting possibilities of a growing sharing economy. This program was recorded in front of a live audience at The Commonwealth Club of California on March 5, 2013 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What matters more when addressing climate change: individual action, corporate action, or policy change? In all cases, the key to change is disrupting default behaviors. Target, Walmart, and American Airlines are all very good at using "nudges" to disrupt our behavior and get us to buy more stuff, says Gernot Wagner (Author, 'But Will the Planet Notice?'; Economist, EDF). "The trick,” he says, “is to use behavioral nudges on a policy level to move everyone in the right direction [for sustainable behaviors.]" Individual action matters too, says Christopher Jones (Co-Chair, Behavior, Energy & Climate Change Conference; Researcher, CoolClimate Network), once you take one small action you are far more likely to take another in an “on-ramp” to collective action. But “there are some decisions that matter more than others,” contends Glen Low, (Principal, Blu Skye). By reaching decision makers in corporations that have a lot of influence, such as Walmart, he says you can get “systemic change with a handful of people.” A conversation between experts on motivating change. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Through all the growing pains and political attacks, the U.S. solar industry is still moving ahead. But it still only accounts for 1 percent of all U.S. electricity. With the market driving down cost going solar “makes perfect economic sense,” says Marco Krapels. Founders of three large solar firms and a banker talk about tapping the sun to create jobs, investment opportunities, and the shadow of China. This program was recorded in front of a live audience at The Commonwealth Club of California on February 5, 2013 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices