The Takeover

Tzeporah Berman, an environmental campaigner and architect of the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative, discusses the global response to U.S. fossil fuel policies and the positive traction of the treaty. Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org, critiques Trump’s push for fossil fuels, arguing it sets back climate efforts and hampers renewable energy development. Both guests emphasize the importance of public pressure on banks and the silent majority's desire for climate action, as they explore how grassroots movements can drive change despite political challenges.

Tzeporah Berman, a prominent environmental activist, launched the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty after noticing the 2015 Paris Agreement overlooked fossil fuel production. She discusses her inspiration from witnessing environmental devastation firsthand and how she rallied support from Nobel laureates and youth for the treaty. Berman highlights the need for legal rules to curb fossil fuel output, explores the financial strategies behind the Just Transition Capital Fund, and emphasizes the importance of addressing fossil fuel subsidies and political challenges.

Today, we’re sharing something a little different on our feed. It’s part of an episode swap we’re doing with CANADALAND, and we think their episode When Politics Ruins Friendships fits right into what we explore here on The Takeover.You’ve heard us talk about how powerful voices are weaponizing language and misinformation to shape the climate conversation. But those same forces.., those same tactics… are also tearing apart our relationships and reshaping how we talk to each other in our deeply divided world. In this episode, host Sam Konnert explores what happens when politics stop being about policies. First, you’ll hear a deeply personal story about a friendship destroyed by political radicalization. Then Sam speaks with Ryan Broderick, the writer of a popular newsletter called Garbage Day, about how to recognize this behaviour in your personal circles and maybe even how to pull someone back from the edge.If you’ve been listening to The Takeover, you know how important it is to understand not just what people are saying, but how those messages are being used to push us further apart. For more episodes like this, you can follow Canadaland wherever you get your podcasts. This is When Politics Ruins Friendships, from CANADALAND. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We take our exploration of right-wing politics to Ottawa, where the Canada Strong and Free Network conference brings together key players in the Conservative movement. Our goal: to compare this event with the ARC conference in London, U.K., and see how each reflects the state of right-wing thought today. With a federal election underway, I wasn’t sure how many major Conservative figures would show up—but as it turns out, the campaign wasn’t a distraction. It was a central theme, woven through speeches, panels, and hallway conversations alike. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chris Wright, a fracking executive and former CEO of Liberty Energy, is a climate change skeptic and was favored for the U.S. Energy Secretary role during Trump's presidency. In this discussion, Wright's pro-fossil fuel agenda is highlighted, emphasizing his plans to deregulate the industry despite concerns about environmental impacts. His controversial confirmation hearing and dismissal of renewable energy showcase the tensions between fossil fuels and climate goals. The podcast also touches on conservative networks and notable figures like Jordan Peterson, linking their influence on energy policy.

At a recent conference, a brave speaker dared to challenge the views of Trump and Musk, shaking up a gathering fixated on dismantling 'woke' governance. The discussions ranged from climate policies in a conservative light to the irony of an elite's critique on inequality. Notably, debates heated up over nuclear energy as a preferable alternative to unreliable renewables. Meanwhile, fossil fuel advocacy surged, revealing a stark divide in climate debate perspectives and igniting conversations about transparency and accountability in political dialogues.

Jordan Peterson is a co-founder of The Alliance for Responsible Citizenship – ARC. Episode two of The Takeover examines his career from a psychology professor at the University of Toronto to wildly successful author and guru for dissatisfied young men and now leader of a global movement to create a right-wing world. This movement is called ARC - the Alliance of Responsible Citizenship and its conference in London, U.K. in February 2025 attracted right wing power brokers from around the world. Many people first heard of Peterson when he got into a fight with the University of Toronto and Canada’s Human Rights Commission over a change to the Human Rights Act. It was amended to include sexual orientation as a prohibited grounds of discrimination extending LGBTQ+ individuals.A couple of years later he published a book that vaulted him to fame, particularly among young men who “hadn’t grown up”, according to Peterson. The book, 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos is essentially a self-help book for living a life.How did he get from there to London, hosting a conference of people who want to upend western democracies? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Canada’s National Observer teamed up with DeSmog, an online investigative that describes itself as an antidote to science denial and misinformation, on The Takeover project.We went to the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship conference in London, a right-wing networking event organized by former U of T professor Jordan Peterson. We observed how speakers spread anti-net-zero strategies across a growing conservative network that includes the U.S., the U.K., Europe, Australia and Canada.ARC’s goal is to reveal ‘the environmental climate scam’ and end the ‘appalling policy’ of net-zero worldwide. U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright told the conference in a video appearance. ‘net zero is a sinister goal'.Supporters and architects of Project 2025, the roadmap for the Trump administration, which covers almost every aspect of American life and U.S. foreign policy, were at ARC to provide information and encouragement. Jordan Peterson declared that ARC was for ‘conservatives to really push the envelope.”The move against net-zero and climate commitments is being accelerated by the Trump administration with help from rich power brokers, many of whom work in the fossil fuel industry. And ARC was a place to develop political party platforms, deepen transatlantic alliances and shift to the right, the boundaries of acceptable public debate on net zero. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.