The Climate Pod

This week, we look at the very strange relationship between air pollution and COVID-19. Dr. Marshall Burke, Stanford University Earth System Science Professor and Deputy Director of Center on Food Security and the Environment, explains his piece "COVID-19 reduces economic activity, which reduces pollution, which saves lives." What happens when you calculate the health impacts of the drop of emissions? Dr. Burke explains.  Then, Dr. Sara De Matteis, Associate Professor in Occupational and Environmental Medicine at Cagliari University in Cagliari, Italy, talks about how the long-term exposure to air pollution impacts COVID-19 patients. Can air pollution make the coronavirus more deadly? As always, follow us @climatepod on Twitter and email us at theclimatepod@gmail.com. Our music is "Gotta Get Up" by The Passion Hifi, check out his music at thepassionhifi.com. Rate, review and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and more! Follow Dr. Marshall Burke on Twitter Follow Dr. Sara De Matteis on Twitter Further Reading: Air pollution likely to increase coronavirus death rate, warn experts by Damian Carrington 

How is the novel coronavirus creating new concerns in the fight against climate change? This week, we dig into the subject with a couple of great guests.  First, TIME's Justin Worland joins the show to talk about how the global pandemic could impact international negotiations, the Paris Agreement, oil price wars, and climate activism.  Then, Joel Makower, chairman and co-founder of GreenBiz, tells how he'd like to see our response to the coronavirus favor sustainability and making businesses more green. How can we build a better future out of this mess? He gives some tips to charting that path.  As always, follow us @climatepod on Twitter and email us at theclimatepod@gmail.com. Our music is "Gotta Get Up" by The Passion Hifi, check out his music at thepassionhifi.com. Rate, review and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and more! Follow Justin Worland on Twitter Follow Joel Makower on Twitter Further Reading: How Coronavirus Could Set Back the Fight Against Climate Change by Justin Worland COVID-19 and climate change: A healthy dose of reality by Joel Makower Answers to Six Key Questions About the Oil Price Collapse by Justin Worland

This week, we talk to Rep Sean Casten (D-IL) about his career as an energy entrepreneur before joining Congress, how climate change factored into his decision to run for a House seat in 2018, and what bills he is sponsoring to address the issue. Then, Washington Post's Chris Mooney joins the show to discuss how the coronavirus is impacting global greenhouse emissions. What does this mean in both the long-term and short-term? Chris tells about his reporting on the subject.  As always, follow us @climatepod on Twitter and email us at theclimatepod@gmail.com. Our music is "Gotta Get Up" by The Passion Hifi, check out his music at thepassionhifi.com. Rate, review and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and more! Follow Rep. Sean Casten on Twitter Follow Chris Mooney on Twitter   Further Reading: Coronavirus could halt the world’s emissions growth. Not that we should feel good about that. by Chris Mooney, Brady Dennis, and John Muyskens 

This week, we talk to Julian Brave NoiseCat about a variety of climate issues. He tell us about his journey to the climate movement, how the Green New Deal developed, how the Democratic Primary process has influenced climate policy, and how the experience of Indigenous communities should help inform our adaptation to the climate crisis. Plus, The Hill's Rebecca Klar discusses a recent study that examines some of the national security concerns that we face as global temperatures warm. And returning guest Chad The Bird interviews climate activist Brian Ettling about the GOP walkout in Oregon. What the hell is going on there? As always, follow us @climatepod on Twitter and email us at theclimatepod@gmail.com. Our music is "Gotta Get Up" by The Passion Hifi, check out his music at thepassionhifi.com. Rate, review and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and more! Follow Julian Brave Noisecat on Twitter Follow Rebecca Klar on Twitter Follow Brian Ettling on Twitter Follow Chad The Bird on Twitter   Further Reading: THE FINGERPRINTS OF THE GREEN NEW DEAL ARE ALL OVER THE CLEAN FUTURE ACT by Julian Brave NoiseCat, Leah C. Stokes and Narayan Subramanian Report warns climate change could become 'catastrophic' global, national security threat by Rebecca Klar Oregon Republicans are subverting democracy by running away. Again. by David Roberts Rising Sea Levels, Coastal Erosion: New Report Says Half the World's Sandy Beaches at Risk From Climate Change By 2100 by Frank Jordans

This week, a coalition headed to Washington D.C. to try to halt changes to the National Environmental Protection Act. WE ACT's Kerene Tayloe, Director of Federal Legislative Affairs, was part of the coalition and joins the show to explain what is under threat, how to oppose the changes, and what WE ACT is doing as an organization to help support environmental justice. Then, the Washington Post published an Op-Ed this week comparing Sen. Bernie Sanders' approach to climate to President Trump's just weeks after refusing to publish an Op-Ed by scientists that support the Green New Deal. We talk to two of the scientists that signed their name to the Op-Ed about the content of the piece, why they wanted it published, and why it's important for scientists to have a voice on the Green New Deal.  As always, follow us @climatepod on Twitter and email us at theclimatepod@gmail.com. Our music is "Gotta Get Up" by The Passion Hifi, check out his music at thepassionhifi.com. Rate, review and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and more! Follow We Act on Twitter Follow Kerene Tayloe on Twitter Follow Isaac Larkin on Twitter Follow Dr. Emily Grubert on Twitter Follow Sunrise Scientists on Twitter Learn more about WE ACT Further Reading Here's the Pro-Bernie Climate Scientist Op-Ed the Washington Post Wouldn't Run by Brian Kahn  

Both the continent of Antarctica and the month of January hit new record temperatures in 2020. How did this happen? We talk to Matthew Cappucci of The Washington Post about these weather patterns, how a meteorologist spots the impact of climate change in bizarre weather, and also talk about the Broomstick Challenge, the movies "Sharknado" and "Twister," and even Al Roker.  Then, we are joined by the University of Arizona's Dr. John J. Wiens and Cristian Román-Palacios, who recently published a study that made headlines for its analysis on the  potential extinction crisis looming if warming temperatures continue. They explain the major drivers behind extinction patterns and where plant and animal most likely to occur.  Ty and Brock also discuss BP's new climate announcement, Jeff Bezos' big donation, the 2019 SEAL Awards, and that time they broke a picture frame in their parents' house and lied about it.  As always, follow us @climatepod on Twitter and email us at theclimatepod@gmail.com. Our music is "Gotta Get Up" by The Passion Hifi, check out his music at thepassionhifi.com. Rate, review and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and more! Follow Matthew Cappucci on Twitter Follow Cristian Román-Palacios on Twitter Learn more about the Wiens Lab Learn more about Cristian's work Further Reading Recent responses to climate change reveal the drivers of species extinction and survival by Dr. John J. Weins and Cristian Román-Palacios Antarctica just hit 65 degrees, its warmest temperature ever recorded by Matthew Cappucci The viral ‘broomstick challenge’ always works by Matthew Cappucci Beware oil execs in environmentalists' clothing - BP could derail real change by Alice Bell  

This week, we take a look at ways to improve media coverage around the climate crisis with two of the most innovative, important voices in the industry. First, we're joined by Mary Annaïse Heglar, writer and co-host of the Hot Take podcast, a great new show on media criticism on climate coverage. Mary discusses her own approach to climate writing and vision for better coverage this decade. Then, Mark Hertsgaard, veteran climate journalist and co-creator of Covering Climate Now, discusses his new initiative to foster better media collaboration on covering the crisis and how to make climate issues more prominent in news coverage.  This is a wide-ranging and fascinating discussion! As always, follow us @climatepod on Twitter and email us at theclimatepod@gmail.com. Our music is "Gotta Get Up" by The Passion Hifi, check out his music at thepassionhifi.com. Rate, review and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and more! Follow Mary Annaïse Heglar on Twitter Follow Mark Hertsgaard on Twitter Learn more about the Hot Take podcast  Learn more about Covering Climate Now

Big show this week! First, Felix Salmon (chief financial correspondent for Axios, Slate's Money podcast, Axios Edge Newsletter) joins the show to discuss why all that talk at the World Economic Forum in Davos may be cheap, why Greta wasn't speaking in a bigger room, where he sees some of the biggest needs for economic policy to address climate change, and how attitudes are changing on the financial prospects of fossil fuel companies. We ask Felix: Is Jim Cramer the Greta Thunberg of financial cable television? (Spoiler alert: he's not). Then, we talk to Justin Nobel, who's remarkable investigation for the Economic Hardship Reporting Project and Rolling Stone reveals a shocking truth around the dangers we face with toxic waste coming from oil-and-gas wells. The threat is deadly and most of us are simply unaware it exists.  As always, follow us @climatepod on Twitter and email us at theclimatepod@gmail.com. Our music is "Gotta Get Up" by The Passion Hifi, check out his music at thepassionhifi.com. Rate, review and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and more! Follow Felix Salmon on Twitter Follow Justin Nobel on Twitter Learn more about the Economic Hardship Reporting Project  Further Reading: America's Radioactive Secret by Justin Nobel Axios Edge: Davos Hypocrisy by Felix Salmon  

This week, Dr. Gavin Schmidt, Director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, joins the show to review the results of NASA and NOAA analyses on 2019 climate data. He explains what the second hottest year on record means for an increasingly concerning trend.  Then, Citizens' Climate Lobby's Daniel Palken explains to us about how to talk to conservatives and Republican lawmakers. He discusses what motivates right-leaning voters, how CCL approaches reaching out to this group, and their upcoming event in Washington D.C.  As always, follow us @climatepod on Twitter and email us at theclimatepod@gmail.com. Our music is "Gotta Get Up" by The Passion Hifi, check out his music at thepassionhifi.com. Rate, review and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and more! Follow Dr. Gavin Schmidt on Twitter  Follow Daniel Palken on Twitter  Further Reading: NASA, NOAA Analyses Reveal 2019 Second Warmest Year on Record Trump Removes Pollution Controls on Streams and Wetlands by Coral Davenport in The New York Times To learn more about Citizens' Climate Lobby's conservative lobby day on The Hill, Feb. 3-4, check out https://citizensclimatelobby.org/ or follow CCL on Twitter. 

Two interviews this week discussing two major topics we haven't covered on the podcast. First, Zahra Hirji returns to the show to discuss her investigative reporting into George Luber, a former official in the CDC's climate program, and explains what former and current staffers told her about his dismissal.  Then, Vice's Adi Renaldi joins us from Jakarta to talk about the devastating flooding in the Indonesian city, how climate change is impacting Jakarta, and the growing issue of air pollution.  As always, follow us @climatepod on Twitter and email us at theclimatepod@gmail.com. Our music is "Gotta Get Up" by The Passion Hifi, check out his music at thepassionhifi.com. Rate, review and subscribe to this podcast on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, and more! Follow Zahra Hirji on Twitter Follow Adi Renaldi on Twitter Further Reading: How A Bad Boss Remade Himself As A Climate Hero by Zahra Hirji  Jakarta's Flood Are Yet Another Wake-Up Call On Climate Change by Adi Renaldi It's Not Just Australia - Indonesia is Facing Its Own Climate Disaster by Rachel Ramirez  Australia's Weird Weather Is Getting Even Weather by Umair Irfan