Climate One

Protest is the ultimate in equal-opportunity political action. As Annie Leonard, former executive director of Greenpeace USA says, "Making change is like laying a stone path across the garden. Peaceful protest may be every 4th or 8th or 200th stone; it helps us get where we want to go but also we need a lot of other stones too.”  Leonard explores the history of protests in her new book “Protest: Respect It. Defend It. Use It.” 

And while protest is the loudest and most visible tool, it’s only one of many ways to take action. Through community building, through civic engagement, through elected office, through corporate boardrooms, through churches and nonprofit agencies, there are countless paths to exercising power and promoting positive change. In this episode we hear from three leaders working in three different arenas, all toward the same goal.

Guests:

Annie Leonard, Environmental Activist, Author of “Protest: Respect It, Defend It, Use It”

Danielle Lee, Founder, Climate Action Club 

James Coleman, City Councilor, South San Francisco

For show notes, transcript, and related links, visit climateone.org/podcasts

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

04:00 – Annie Leonard shares the story of the Section 504 sit-ins protest in San Francisco

06:30 – Different ways protest can be effective

08:30 – Leonard on why she puts her body on the line (gets arrested) during protests

16:00 – Leonard on the lawsuit Energy Transfer brought against Greenpeace USA over Standing Rock protests

22:00 – Protecting, defending, and using the right to protest 

26:00 – Danielle Lee on organizing younger people around climate and environment 

30:30 – Systemic versus personal action

37:00 – James Coleman on the decision to run for office as a tool for effective change

41:00 – Impact of local government 

46:30 – How change actually happens

50:00 – Climate One More Thing

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Sometimes mothers are biological; other times, they’re chosen. But often, they're the fiercest people you can have on your side.

In this special Mother’s Day episode, we’ll hear stories about the vital role mothers and caregivers play in confronting the climate crisis. From a midwife providing essential healthcare in one of the most climate-stressed regions on the planet to an organizer who leads a network of over a million caregivers demanding cleaner air and a healthier future — these women show what it means to protect people in a changing world.

Guests: 

Dominique Browning, Co-Founder and Director, Moms Clean Air Force

Neha Mankani, Founder, Mama Baby Fund; Climate Advisor, International Confederation of Midwives

Shohreh Karimipour, Former Regional Water Engineer, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation; Kousha Navidar’s Mom

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org/podcasts.

Highlights:

00:00 Intro

00:25 Shohreh Karimipour on instilling care for the environment

07:49 Dominique Browning on founding Moms Clean Air Force

12:36 Dominique Browning on framing climate around children’s health

15:10 Isla and Levi on what their mom has taught them

18:28 Dominique Browning on leading and dealing with federal rollbacks

23:47 Dominique Browning on how her approach is different

29:44 More mom stories

34:06 Neha Mankani on midwifery as a climate resilience strategy

35:54 Neha Mankani on connecting reproductive care to the climate crisis

38:39 Neha Mankani on the healthcare system in Pakistan

45:30 Neha Mankani on how climate impacts men and women differently

49:15 Neha Mankani on being able to serve in her role

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In 2021, legendary investor John Doerr outlined his plan to solve climate change in his bestseller “Speed & Scale.” The plan outlines 10 objectives, each with their own set of key results, to cut emissions to net zero. And in true John Doerr style, the results are to be measurable and trackable. 

​Now, five years later, Doerr and co-author Ryan Panchadsaram unveil their 2026 update, revealing where the world is winning, where it's falling behind, and what it will take to close the gap.

Guests:

John Doerr, Venture capitalist; Chair, Kleiner Perkins

Ryan Panchadsaram, Advisor to the Chairman, Kleiner Perkins

Aliya Haq, President, Clean Economy Project (CleanEcon)

Robinson Meyer, Founding Executive Editor, Heatmap News

​​Nancy E. Pfund,  Founder and Managing Partner, DBL Partners

For show notes, transcript, and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/podcasts

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

01:00 – John Doerr on how his plan differs from others

05:30 – Ryan Panchadsaram: updated plan focuses on what needs to be built, rather than cut

08:30 – Bright spot: deployment of solar and wind

10:00 – Big challenges: methane leaks

15:30 – Keeping accountable with shifting deadlines

19:00 – Where government succeeds and fails in addressing climate

21:30 – Where tech industry/VC succeeds and fails in addressing climate

29:00 – Reframing the climate narrative around the good news

33:20 – Aliya Haq: load growth is an incredible opportunity for us to advance clean

37:00 – Coalition uniting to fix the grid and make policy work for clean energy

39:00 – Robinson Meyer on geopolitical energy shocks and reconsideration of fuel sources

44:15 – Race for clean tech is a “frenemy” competition 

48:00 – Nancy Pfund: Clean energy remains a very “investable” area 

52:00 – Cost curves for EVs, solar are inexorable – we just need to build policy to support it

54:00 – Climate One More Thing

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This year, one of the most powerful politicians in the country decided not to seek re-election. For nearly 38 years, Nancy Pelosi has represented the people of San Francisco in the US House of Representatives. As one of the most powerful House Speakers in U.S. history, Pelosi played a central role in advancing landmark environmental and climate laws, and bringing energy and climate policy to the forefront of the national agenda.  

Her retirement opens up a space for a new person to take up her mantle as an advocate for climate and energy policies, as well as the other priorities of the people of California’s 11th District. Saikat Chakrabarti and Scott Wiener are both vying to represent the district in congress. How does each candidate plan to balance serious climate action with the everyday economic pressures facing Bay Area communities? Can they refocus Congress on climate solutions? And what, specifically, is their plan?

Guests: 

Saikat Chakrabarti, President, New Consensus

Scott Wiener, California State Senator 

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org/podcasts.

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Finding one's voice in climate action can come in many forms. Author and activist Taylor Brorby grew up in Center, North Dakota as a fourth-generation member of a fossil-fuel family. He struggled to find his place as a young gay kid who loved art, music, nature and poetry. Over time, he turned that tension into writing that challenges the fossil fuel industry, makes space for others stuck in a broken system, and inspires a more just future. 

Suzie Hicks felt the weight of climate concerns but after college, didn’t know what to do with those feelings. After doing an internship at the New England Aquarium, they realized they could merge their love of performing with a career focused on climate. With the help of a sunflower puppet named Sprout, Suzie created a children’s show that teaches kids about climate change through a frame of possibility and hope, not doom and gloom. 

Guests

Taylor Brorby, Activist, Author, “Boys and Oil: Growing Up Gay in a Fractured Land”

Suzie Hicks, Climate Media Maker and Educator

For show notes, transcript, and related links, visit ClimateOne.org/podcasts.

00:00 – Intro

02:20 – Taylor Brorby describes the N.D. town where he grew up

05:00 – What he learned from the prairie landscape

07:30 – Other queer writers from the Great Plains

13:30 – Influential environmental writers 

17:00 – Writing optimistically rather than dystopian narratives

20:00 – Getting arrested protesting the Dakota Access Pipeline

25:30 – Why we need to be supporting rural writers 

30:00 – Project Tundra, a carbon capture project near Center, N.D.

34:00 – Origins of Suzie Hicks, the Climate Chick

36:30 – It’s okay to have complicated feelings about climate change

40:00 – Working with kids' existing love for nature in educating them about climate change

42:00 – Why introduce kids to climate change? Because it’s already happening.

47:00 – How Hicks sees their role as a positive storyteller around climate change

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We are living through a time where big positive change seems unachievable, but there are two instances from the recent past that prove change is possible. For over a century, Indigenous people along the Klamath River fought to protect their way of life, and the salmon they depend on. Their persistence helped remove four dams and restore hundreds of miles of river. In Los Angeles, decades of science, activism, and policy turned toxic smog into cleaner air. 

Both stories reveal that progress takes persistence, coalition-building, and time. But when communities push and institutions respond, meaningful change is possible.

Guests: 

Amy Bowers Cordalis, Yurok Tribe member, Author, The Water Remembers

Ann Carlson, Professor of Environmental Law, UCLA; Author, Smog and Sunshine: The Surprising Story of How Los Angeles Cleaned Up Its Air

For show notes and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/podcasts

00:00 – Intro

02:26 – Amy Bowers Cordalis on the river and salmon 

06:63 – Amy Bowers Cordalis on Uncle Ray 

12:53 – Amy Bowers Cordalis on witnessing the effects of the dams 

16:04 – Amy Bowers Cordalis on the lowest salmon run 

2218  – Amy Bowers Cordalis on getting to destroy the dams

28:18 – Amy Bowers Cordalis on seeing the river come back to life 

34:13 – Ann Carlson on the state of LA air

37:58 – Ann Carlson on the first steps towards cleaning the air 

40:14 – Ann Carlson on getting from pineapples to smog

44:27 – Ann Carlson on the Mothers of East LA 

52:40 – Ann Carlson on why it the book is important now

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About half the global population spends some amount of their leisure time playing games, whether it’s a board game after dinner with friends or online role-playing experience through an alternate world. While many video and board games have long incorporated elements we can imagine in a climate-altered future — such as resource scarcity, conflict, and survival — some in the industry are working to shift players’ mindsets towards protecting nature and reducing their own climate impacts in the process. 

Daybreak is a cooperative board game about stopping climate change. Cities: Skylines lets players do urban planning with climate-friendly policies such as offering free public transportation or implementing congestion pricing. And the UN’s Environment Programme is backing the Playing for Planet Alliance, which awards games that spark engagement while delivering an environmental message. How can games encourage  people to explore climate realities and possible futures in a way that allows greater engagement, rather than anxiety and despair?

Guests:

Jacob Geller, Author; Video Essayist

Laura Carter, CEO and Founder, TreesPlease Games

Sam Barratt, Chief of Youth, Education and Advocacy, UN Environment Programme

For show notes and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/podcasts

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

00:30 – Kousha and Ariana play a video game

05:00 – Jacob Geller on video games and climate themes

11:00 – World-building games that employ climate solutions and strategies

21:30 – Laura Carter on her early love of games and environmental issues

26:00 – LongLeaf Valley and storytelling in games

33:30 – Why build tree-planting into the gameplay

40:00 – Sam Barratt on why video games medium is so critical for engagement 

46:30 – Playing for the Planet Alliance and Green Games Jam

52:00 – Why it’s important for games industry to decarbonize

58:00 – Climate One More Thing

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In a moment when nearly everything feels polarized, Benji Backer is trying to carve out a different path, one where caring about the natural world isn’t a partisan issue. As the founder of Nature Is Nonpartisan, he’s bringing together voices from across the political spectrum who might disagree on climate policy, but still share a desire to preserve public lands, wildlife, and the outdoors. 

Can conservation still serve as common ground in a divided country? What does it take to make environmentalism resonate beyond traditional audiences? Is a bipartisan movement possible in today’s political climate?

Guests: 

Benji Backer, Founder and CEO, Nature is Nonpartisan

Skyler Zunk, Founder and CEO, Energy Right 

For show notes, transcript, and related links, visit ClimateOne.org/podcasts.

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

03:30 – Benji Backer on his relationship with nature

05:54 – Benji Backer on how Nature is Nonpartisan came to be

09:29 – Benji Backer on making conservation culturally relevant 

16:44 – Benji Backer on the hard work of moving policy forward 

21:19 – Benji Backer on why political leanings are labeled on staff page

24:16 – Benji Backer on bringing more people into the tent

31:45 – Benji Backer on where there is bipartisan support

34:30 – Benji Backer on where his work has had the most impact 

39:23 – Skyler Zunk on his time working for the first Trump administration

44:31 – Skyler Zunk on a farmer who has solar panels on the sheep farm

49:26 – Skyler Zunk on the importance of being able to relate to locals

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For decades we’ve seen nations exercise geopolitical dominance tied to their production and control of fossil fuels – especially oil. But that leverage may be changing. Last year, China installed nearly twenty times the amount of wind and solar as the United States.

In this essay in The National Interest, the authors lay out a global political and economic realignment already underway. Petrostates, like those in OPEC, are increasingly at odds with electrostates like China and many in the EU. This isn’t to say that electrostates are not without resource challenges – they’re seriously dependent on mineral supply chains – but the challenges are different, as are the opportunities. When 70% of the world’s population lives in fossil-fuel-importing countries, how are these diverging resource paths shaping the global balances of power? 

Guests:

Tatiana Mitrova, Global Fellow, Center on Global Energy Policy, Columbia University

Vijay Vaitheeswaran, Global Energy & Climate Innovation Editor, The Economist

Li Shuo, Director, China Climate Hub at the Asia Society Policy Institute

For show notes, related links, and episode transcript, visit https://climateone.org/podcasts

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

04:30 – Tatiana Mitrova on petrostates and the idea of electrostates

10:00 – Electrostates are already taking market share from petrostates

13:30 – How Mitrova sees balance of power shifting as world electrifies

17:15 – Vijay Vaitheeswaran on the concept of an electrostate

26:00 – How cheap electricity could allow developing nations to skip over fossil fuels

34:00 – Vaitheeswaran on how U.S. should take on industrial policy in this moment

38:00 – Li Shuo: China’s latest 5-year plan suggests it will double down on clean tech sector

41:00 – China installed nearly twenty times wind and solar as U.S. last year

49:30 – China is on track to become firs

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More than perhaps any other state, Hawaii has major incentives to decarbonize. Imported oil accounts for about 90% of Hawaii's total energy consumption, and electricity prices are more than three times the national average. So it may not be surprising that Hawaii was the first state in the nation to set a 100% renewable energy goal by 2045. But that’s a hard goal to achieve, especially given the realities of geographic isolation and the costs of importing fuel and materials. 

Hawaii Governor Josh Green is bullish about the island state’s decarbonization and wants all options on the table. That includes making liquified natural gas part of the mix, along with solar, wind, and geothermal. His administration passed the first “green fee” which imposes a tax on Hawaii visitors and is expected to generate $100 million for climate resilience projects. What can we learn from Hawaii’s decarbonization process? 

Guests: 

Josh Green, Governor of Hawaii

Rylee Brooke Kamahele, Youth Plaintiff, Navahine v. Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation

Tessa M. Hill, Oceanographer and Professor, Earth and Planetary Sciences, UC Davis
For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org.

Highlights:

00:00 Intro

03:08 Josh Green on achieving Hawaii’s climate goals

07:11 Josh Green on offshore wind

13:17 Josh Green on the effect of the wildfires and the recovery

18:09 Josh Green on decarbonizing

20:22 Josh Green on the health effects of the climate crisis

23:30 Rylee Brooke Kamahele on growing up

24:26 Rylee Brooke Kamahele on community action

29:06 Rylee Brooke Kamahele on the outcome of the lawsuit

34:27 Rylee Brooke Kamahele on the responsibility of older generations

37:55 Tessa M. Hill on rapidly changing oceans

41:43 Tessa M. Hill on the impact to common fish

44:44 Tessa M. Hill on the winners and losers of the changing oceans

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Food loss and waste account for up to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions and cost $1 trillion annually, according to the United Nations. About a third of all food grown on the planet gets wasted, rather than eaten. In developing countries, waste usually occurs between the field and the store, due to poor infrastructure, lack of refrigeration, and broken supply chains. In rich countries, most waste happens after food reaches the store, where consumers don’t buy imperfect food – or buy too much and toss what they don’t get around to consuming. How much pollution, deforestation and starvation could be reduced if we got this problem under control? And how can new tech, including AI, be brought to bear on the problem?

Guests:

Matt Rogers, Co-Founder and CEO, Mill Industries; Co-Founder, Nest

Page Schult, CEO, Topanga 

Kayla Abe, Co-Owner, Shuggie’s

David Murphy, Co-Owner and Chef, Shuggie’s

For show notes, related links, and episode transcript, visit climateone.org/podcasts.

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

04:30 – Matt Rogers on surviving Hurricane Andrews and his climate journey

06:30 – On the climate impact of HVAC and the creation of Nest thermostat

08:30 – On creating Mill food recycler and addressing food waste

13:45 – Partnership with Whole Food to recycle food waste and feed it back to chickens

17:00 – On AI as a tool for climate solutions

19:30 – Clean tech in Silicon Valley 

23:00 – Matt Rogers shares his views on advocacy, philanthropy and impact investing

30:00 – Shuggie’s restaurant sources ingredients that would otherwise be wasted

37:00 – David Murphy makes the case for sustainable food and upcycled ingredients

40:00 – Page Schult on global impact of food waste

44:00 – Topanga’s work providing reusable food containers for college campuses

52:30 – Thinking about it circularity as systems change

54:00 – Role of AI in reducing food waste in commercial kitchens

58:00 – Climate One More Thing

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While the federal government has all but abandoned trying to address the climate crisis, cities around the world are stepping up. C40 is an international network of 97 cities representing 920 million people and 23% of the world’s economy. Almost three out of four of these cities have already peaked their emissions. Here in the U.S., Climate Mayors is a bipartisan network of nearly 350 municipal leaders, representing 48 states and more than 70 million Americans. How are cities innovating on reducing emissions, adapting to increasing climate risks, and — perhaps most importantly — sharing their knowledge?

Episode Guests: 

Eric Garcetti, C40 Ambassador for Global Climate Diplomacy; Former Mayor, Los Angeles 

Kate Gallego, Mayor of Phoenix; Former Chair, Climate Mayors 

For show notes, related links, and episode transcript, visit https://climateone.org/podcasts

Highlights:

00:00 Intro

2:46 Eric Garcetti on his time as mayor of LA

9:45 Eric Garcetti on where cities are moving the needle

17:47 Eric Garcetti on cities on the world stage

22:11 Eric Garcetti on the work of C40

26:20 Eric Garcetti on knowledge sharing

32:17 Eric Garcetti on co-leading

40:11 Kate Gallego on dealing with the heat in Phoenix

43:46 Kate Gallego on affordability

48:10 Kate Gallego on regulating data centers

52:35 Kate Gallego on working with other mayors

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Rising electricity rates across the country are adding pressure to families and businesses already dealing with inflation in other aspects of their lives. Most Americans get their power from a utility that needs to turn a profit for its investors. And people are fed up with the status quo.

“Across the country, the utilities have just gotten greedy and are asking for more than they need,” says Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes. 

Some communities are considering cutting out the profit motive for utilities, taking on the complicated and expensive prospect of moving to public power. But switching from an investor-owned utility to public power is an uphill battle. What are other strategies for reining in corporate greed and making electricity more affordable?

Episode Guests:

Kris Mayes, Arizona Attorney General

Naveena Sadasivam, Investigative Reporter and Editor, Grist

Carroll Fife, Councilmember, District 3, Oakland, California

Jackson Kaspari, Director of Member Services, Community Power Coalition of New Hampshire

For show notes, transcript, and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/podcasts

Skill Up for Earth: ⁠https://skillup.earth⁠

04:00 – Naveena Sadasivam breaks down electric bill drivers by region

14:00 – High bills affected outcome of Georgia Public Utility Commission

17:00 – Tucson town hall held by AZ AG Kris Mayes to discuss power bill

19:00 – Mayes explains why she’s intervening in rate cases

27:00 – Imbalance of power between utility companies and PUCs and consumer advocates

33:00 – Would Arizona legislators consider allowing community choice aggregation

36:00 – Carroll Fife on why she supported a state bill to explore other options to power suppliers

43:40 – Jackson Kaspari explains how community choice aggregation works in New Hampshire

48:00 – Utility pushback

54:00 – Kaspari explains how much work it took to set up CCA in New Hampshire

56:30 – Climate One More Thing

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Congress approved billions for federal grants and programs through the EPA during the Biden administration. Those dollars were meant to help disadvantaged communities and fund community resilience projects, public health programs, and initiatives to reduce energy insecurity on tribal lands. But just as these projects were getting underway, the Trump administration froze many of the grants, put others under indefinite review, or canceled them outright. 

Now, some of the groups that were awarded federal funds have banded together and are suing the federal government for the money they’re owed. Others are seeking alternative funding streams. In this episode, we speak with people whose projects are on hold, but who continue to serve their communities.  

Episode Guests: 

Ben Grillot, Senior Attorney, Southern Environmental Law Center

Wahleah Johns, Former Director, U.S. DOE Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs

Ilyssa Manspeizer, CEO, Landforce

Bryan Cordell, Executive Director, Sustainability Institute

For show notes, related links, and episode transcript, visit ⁠⁠climateone.org/podcasts.⁠⁠

Skill Up for Earth: ⁠https://skillup.earth⁠

Highlights:

00:00 Intro

03:01 Ilyssa Manspeizer on what her organization, Landforce

06:29 Ilyssa Manspeizer on the impact of federal grant funds

08:58 Ilyssa Manspeizer on losing the grant funding

11:38 Ilyssa Manspeizer on Landforce joining the lawsuit against the EPA

14:08 Ben Grillot on the original EPA grantees

19:08 Ben Grillot on the politicization of the grants

24:54 Ben Grillot on the loss of trust with the federal government

26:42 Bryan Cordell on the work of the Sustainability Institute

30:38 Bryan Cordell on the status of their work after federal grants were pulled

33:51 Wahleah Johns on growing up on a Navajo reservation

45:59 Wahleah Johns on the community response to IRA rollbacks

48:20 Wahleah Johns on working toward the future

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It’s been an unusually warm and dry winter across the west, and that’s bad news for the seven states and 40 million people that rely on water from the Colorado River. The water flowing into the river from snowmelt and rain is dwindling, partly because of climate change. The basin's two major reservoirs are at historic lows, and without a sudden influx of snowstorms, streamflow forecasts for the coming year aren’t looking good. That adds stress to an already drought-stricken region where negotiations on how to share the river’s water in the future are tense and stalled out. 

“We’re at a point where we have to make some serious long-term adjustment of expectations. In other words, people need to agree to take a lot less water than they've been counting on. And that is always really hard when water is scarce,” says Sarah Porter, director of the Kyl Center for Water Policy at Arizona State University.

The federal government has given states a deadline of Feb. 14th to reach an agreement, after which the Bureau of Reclamation commissioner could divvy up the water between states as it deems fit. It’s already released its draft environmental impact statement with possible alternatives.

What’s led to this point of crisis? What is keeping states from reaching agreement? And what will the cities, farmers and industries that depend on the river do as climate change leads to a lower volume of water in an increasingly hotter and drier future?  

Episode Guests:

Sarah Porter, Director, Kyl Center for Water Policy, Arizona State University

For show notes and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/podcasts

Skill Up for Earth: https://skillup.earth

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On January 3, U.S. forces captured Venezuela’s president, Nicolás Maduro, and his wife, and flew them to New York to stand trial for drug trafficking and narco-terrorisim. At the same time, President Trump has not been shy about stating his other motivation for intervening in the country: Back in December, he said, “We had a lot of oil there. As you know they threw our companies out, and we want it back." So what are the geopolitical ramifications of these actions?  And in a world increasingly powered by renewable energy, could fossil-fueled conflicts become a thing of the past? 

Episode Guests: 

Luisa Palacios, Senior Research Scholar, Center on Global Energy Policy, Columbia University 

Amy Myers Jaffe, Director, Energy, Climate Justice and Sustainability Lab, NYU 

Bill McKibben, Founder, Third Act and 350.org

For show notes, transcript, and related links, visit ⁠⁠climateone.org/podcasts⁠⁠.

Highlights:

00:00 Intro

04:54 Luisa Palacios on growing up in Venezuela

08:59 Luisa Palacios on the risks in Venezuela's oil industry

15:15 Luisa Palacios on the climate impact of increasing Venezuela’s oil output

18:01 Amy Myers Jaffe on her reaction to the Maduro’s forced removal

21:08 Amy Myers Jaffe on what the military action is really about

28:32 Amy Myers Jaffe on the importance of the action in Venezuela

35:21 Amy Myers Jaffe on the national security aspects of clean tech

38:39 Bill McKibben on the military action in Venezuela

49:45 Bill McKibben on the “last gasp’ of the fossil fuel industry

52:26 Bill McKibben on the US reversal on climate policy and clean tech

**********

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As the planet warms, the story of climate change is increasingly becoming a story about human health. Rising temperatures, wildfire smoke, flooding, and shifting disease patterns are no longer distant threats; they are everyday realities. The climate crisis is reshaping health care systems, exposing inequalities, and forcing doctors and policymakers to rethink some of their practices. Medical schools are beginning to adopt climate as part of their curricula, yet such education is widely variable across the country. So what policy and system changes might help address both the climate and health crises at the same time?

Episode Guests:

Jeni Miller, Executive Director, Global Climate and Health Alliance

Cecilia Sorensen, Director, Global Consortium on Climate and Health Education, Columbia University 

Nabeeha Kazi Hutchins, President and CEO, PAI

For show notes, transcript, and related links, visit climateone.org/podcasts

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

03:30 – Cecilia Sorensen on consulting for a Grey’s Anatomy episode on heat

07:00 – Climate impact she’s seen in the ER

10:00 – Medical education is variable across the country, including climate awareness

16:00 – Importance of public health and the role of preventive medicine

21:00 – Jeni Miller on interconnections between climate and human health

29:30 – Climate crisis puts pressure on global health systems

34:30 – Ways health care systems can better prepare for climate impacts

44:30 – Connection between climate change and reproductive/sexual health

51:30 – Climate change exacerbates existing inequalities for women and girls around the world

56:00 – Navigating efforts by the Trump administration to increase fertility and birth rate while cutting social services

58:30 – Climate One More Thing

*****

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We’re only about a month into 2026, and already so much has happened — from the Trump administration’s forcible removal of Venezuela’s president to the US pulling out of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change… It’s easy to get caught up in the headlines of the moment and lose sight of the big picture. 

But important developments are happening in sectors like agriculture and renewable technology that don’t break through the noise to the extent they deserve. So, what should we be watching in 2026?

Guests: 

Justine Johnson, Chief Mobility Officer, Michigan

Michael Grunwald, Journalist, Author, We Are Eating The Earth

Jessie Bluedorn, Founder & Executive Director, The Carmack Collective

For show notes, transcript, and related links, visit ClimateOne.org/podcasts

Highlights:

00:00 Intro

05:33 Justine Johnson on the importance of mobility

08:48 Justine Johnson on the future of EV charging

11:20 Justine Johnson on the practicality of new EV charging technology

19:05 Justine Johnson on innovation in financing

22:52 Michael Grunwald on making more food with less land

30:17 Michael Grunwald on the new tech used to constipate beetles to death

37:24 Michael Grunwald on what to watch in politics

43:00 Jessie Bluedorn on the fossil fuel industry’s control over cultural narratives

47:57 Jessie Bluedorn on the comedy in the climate crisis

56:36 Jessie Bluedorn on other areas to keep an eye on in the culture

*****

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Agriculture is directly responsible for 10 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions, and farmers and ranchers face growing climate impacts every day, from more severe storms to intense droughts, making it harder to grow food. 

The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office estimates emissions from the agriculture sector will modestly increase over the next 30 years. Yet the Trump administration is slashing programs that help reduce emissions, feed people, protect farmworkers and animals and sensitive lands. In addition, the Trump administration’s tariffs and trade wars have affected the cost of machinery and sales of major crops. What will these changes mean for our national food system? How are farmers weathering these impacts? And where are people building resilience regardless of federal policy? 

Episode Guests:

Lisa Held, Senior Staff Reporter and Contributing Editor, Civil Eats

Megan O'Rourke, Congressional Candidate NJ07; Former USDA Scientist John Bartman, Illinois farmer

Byron Kominek, Owner and Manager, Jack's Solar Garden

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

05:30 – Lisa Held on major climate and agriculture stories in 2025

07:30 – Climate change is making it harder to be a farmer

09:15 – Changes at USDA

15:00 – How SNAP cuts affect consumers and farmers/growers

18:30 – Trump admin penalizing efforts/grants that support DEI efforts in agriculture

24:00 – John Bartman shares his journey to regenerative agriculture

30:00 – Partnership for Climate Smart Commodities Program and cutbacks under Trump

34:30 – Trade war between China and US is hurting soybean sales and Amazon rainforest

37:10 – Byron Kominek on how he got into agrivoltaics and the benefits it offers

42:00 – Agrivoltaics is climate adaptation

51:20 – Megan O’Rourke on research around kernza, a perennial grain

54:00 – Most pressing challenges for agriculture right now

59:00 – Importance of food security at home and abroad, and role of US farmers

1:03:30 – Climate One More Thing

For show notes , transcript, and related links, visit climateone.org/podcasts

******

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It’s been a year since catastrophic fires tore through Los Angeles. For those who lived through them, the impacts are still being felt. Rebuilding in the aftermath of more frequent and severe fossil-fueled disasters is becoming a big business. Enter the disaster economy, powered by a grab bag of dedicated people helping communities rebuild, and by contractors who may overpromise, underdeliver, and profit from tragedy. Caught in the middle are the survivors, often left to navigate red tape, scams, and soaring costs just to rebuild their lives.

In this episode, produced in collaboration with Grist, we explore the people and systems behind this booming, often exploitative multi-billion dollar industry, and share strategies to help listeners stay protected.

Episode Guests: 

Haley Geller, Photo Stylist; Mother

Ayurella Horn Muller, Staff Writer, Grist

Cricket Logan, Wastewater Management Mechanic, City of St. Petersburg, Florida

Naveena Sadasivam, Writer and Editor, Grist

For show notes, related links, and episode transcript, visit ClimateOne.org

Highlights:

00:00 - Intro

05:06 - Haley Geller on her personal wildfire experience

07:22 - Haley Geller on how life has changed since the fire

11:04 - Haley Geller on navigating the recovery process

16:21 - Ayurella Horn Muller on covering recovery workers

18:39 - Cricket Logan on his disaster recovery work experience

24:16 - Ayurella Horn Muller on the mental health work of disaster recovery

28:25 - Ayurella Horn Muller on working conditions for recovery workers

38:03 - Naveena Sadasivam on talking to people who experienced disaster recovery

40:22 - Naveena Sadasivam on one person’s experience with rebuilding after a fire

49:51 - Naveena Sadasivam on what regulations exist to help prevent fraud

53:41 - Naveena Sadasivam on steps people can take to protect themselves

********

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Those standing up to climate and environmental injustice face challenges they weren’t seeing a year ago. But Gloria Walton, head of The Solutions Project, sees a bigger picture:

“ The reality is that the same systems that created the climate crisis, whether that's colonialism, white supremacy, racism, and the patriarchy, those are the same ones that have harmed communities of color for generations,” she says. Her organization has channeled tens of millions of philanthropic dollars to grassroots efforts that build community resilience. 

Black Girl Environmentalist founder Wawa Gatheru is helping more Black girls, women, and gender-expansive people enter and lead in the climate space. She says the climate fight has shifted from education to action, with over 70% of Americans now understanding that climate change is real. So what should this 'action phase' look like?

Guests:

Gloria Walton, President & CEO, The Solutions Project

Wawa Gatheru, Founder & Executive Director, Black Girl Environmentalist

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org

00:00 – Intro

05:30 – Gloria Walton on the impact of the Altadena wildfires

10:30 – Walton’s work as an organizer in South Central LA

13:00 – Living with idea of abundance

19:00 – Finding and keeping your individual power within our democracy

21:00 – Work of West Street Recovery Project in Houston

22:30 – Developing local resilience hubs

24:00 – Reframing frontline communities as victors, not victims

27:00 – Channeling philanthropy to climate resilience and frontline communities

36:00 – Story of Hoʻāhu Energy Cooperative Molokai 

42:00 – Wawa Gatheru’s start in climate and environmental advocacy

44:00 – Not seeing herself in climate spaces

48:00 – Climate storytelling can offer nuance and move people 

55:00 – Work and growth of Black Girl Environmentalist organization

59:00 – Climate One More Thing

****

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At this moment, the cheapest way to create electricity is by pointing a solar panel at the sun. That’s good news for the climate. It’s also good news for communities who want to take control of their own electricity generation.

In the heart of Brooklyn, UPROSE is helping to build a solar project that will be owned by the community, provide jobs, and help residents bring down their energy costs. In Puerto Rico, where hurricanes have devastated the power grid, community members are building solar microgrids to provide reliable electricity as the utility has proven they cannot. Meanwhile in conservative rural Virginia, Energy Right is helping farmers and rural communities adopt solar projects, touting a free market message about energy independence and security. 

Guests: 

Elizabeth Yeampierre, Attorney; Executive Director, UPROSE 

Skyler Zunk, CEO and Founder, Energy Right 

Arturo Massol-Deyá, Executive Director, Casa Pueblo de Adjuntas

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org.

Highlights:

00:00 - Intro

4:11 - Elizabeth Yeampierre on the history of UPROSE

10:40 - Elizabeth Yeampierre on Sunset Park Solar

14:31 - Elizabeth Yeampierre on the GRID plan

20:46 - Arturo Massol-Deyá on the Origins of Casa Pueblo

23:43 - Arturo Massol-Deyá on providing solar power to the community

33:04 - Arturo Massol-Deyá on what other communities can learn from Casa Pueblo

38:08 - Skyler Zunk on the importance of reliable energy

47:06 - Skyler Zunk on dealing with resistance to solar projects

50:49 - Skyler Zunk on the Inflation Reduction Act 

****

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2025 has been a doozy in so many ways. And climate news has been no exception. Climate One hosts Ariana Brocious and Kousha Navidar look back at what the year has meant for climate progress: the good, the bad, the ugly — and the joyful.

According to the World Meteorological Organization, 2025 will go down as one of the top three warmest years in the 176-year observational record. Climate-change-fueled extreme weather continues to wreak havoc on communities across the world. And yet, it’s not all bad news.  As Bill McKibben points out, we now live on a planet where the cheapest form of energy basically comes from pointing a piece of glass at the sun. And globally, renewable energy surpassed coal for the first time ever.

Despite the federal government’s attacks on climate science and policy, local climate action is still happening across the country and globe, and each of us holds power to make change.

Guests:

Adrienne Heinz, Clinical Research Psychologist, Stanford University School of Medicine

Roxanne Brown, Vice President at Large, United Steelworkers

Pattie Gonia, Drag Queen and environmentalist
For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org

Highlights:

00:00 - Intro

02:00 – 2025 has been the year of AI

04:30 – Trump admin attack on science, climate and environmental regs and rules

06:45 – Good news on renewables and the rise of China as an electrostate

08:30 – New York implements congestion pricing

10:00 – US has removed itself from global climate negotiations

12:45 – Remembering Jane Goodall

15:30 – Adrienne Heinz on how to support yourself and others after a weather disaster

25:30 – Roxanne Brown on how Trump’s pullback of IRA, BIL and CHIPS acts have hurt American workers and industry

34:00 – Growing threat of disinformation in climate conversations

36:30 – Pattie Gonia on how drag performance fits in with their climate and environmental activism

51:00 – How joy is strategic

53:30 – A look ahead at 2026

*****

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Project Drawdown is the world’s leading science-based guide to climate solutions. According to Jonathan Foley, Project Drawdown’s Executive Director, they aim to be the Consumer Reports for climate change. “We synthesize every paper ever written in science, engineering, technical, economic literature, all the data, and bring it together and say, ‘Hey, does this actually work? And if so, how much would it cost? And how long would we have to wait for it?’” 

Foley is not just an expert on the intricacies of hundreds of potential climate solutions; he’s also the winner of the 2025 Stephen H. Schneider Award for Outstanding Science Communication, and an expert at explaining complex ideas in easily digestible terms. As he said on a past Climate One episode, “The great news about addressing climate change is we also build a better world in the process. Imagine going to the doctor and they're like, ‘Wow, you're really sick and I'm gonna give you this medicine, and its side effects are, you're gonna feel better.’ Climate solutions are like that.”

Episode Guests:

Jonathan Foley, Executive Director, Project Drawdown

Eliza Nemser, Executive Director, Climate Changemakers

Highlights:

00:00 Intro

02:11 Jonathan Foley on Stephen Schneider

06:33 Jonathan Foley on balancing science and communication

13:09 Jonathan Foley on Project Drawdown

20:08 Jonathan Foley on less effective climate solutions

23:27 Jonathan Foley on the food industries effect on climate

26:22 Jonathan Foley on being attacked for speaking out about beef

34:20 Jonathan Foley on the need to stop doing “stupid” stuff

40:31 Greg Dalton on meeting Stephen Schneider

41:25 Greg Dalton on creating the Stephen H. Schneider Award for Outstanding Science Communication

45:52 Greg Dalton on Stephen Schneider’s legacy

47:14 Eliza Nemser on her journey to climate activism

49:12 Eliza Nemser on effective volunteerism 

53:23 Eliza Nemser on finding your place in climate action

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It’s been ten years since Pope Francis issued his landmark encyclical on climate and caring for our common home, Laudato Si’. With the election of the new Pope Leo XIV, many are hopeful he will follow in Francis' path. 

Three-quarters of the global population follow a major religion. And the Catholic Church is far from alone among religious institutions in its directives to care for creation. A few years after Laudato Si, Muslim leaders issued Al-Mizan, which restates principles from the Quran on protecting nature in terms of meeting current challenges. Organizations like Interfaith Power and Light, the Jewish group Dayenu, the Hindu Bhumi Project, and the Buddhist Climate Action Network demonstrate the universality of creation care as central to religions worldwide. 

Especially at a time when governments are failing to take meaningful action on climate progress, can faith traditions provide new paths forward?

Guests:

Celia Deane-Drummond, Director, Laudato Si' Research Institute; Senior Research Fellow in Theology at Campion Hall, University of Oxford

Rabbi Jennie Rosenn, Founder & CEO, Dayenu 

Iyad Abumoghli, Founder, Former Director, Faith for Earth Coalition, United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP); Founder and Chair, Al-Mizan

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org.

Highlights: 

00:00 – Intro

00:10 – Quick update on COP30 conclusions

03:40 – Celia Deane-Drummond explains importance of Laudato Si’

08:15 – Will Pope Leo continue Pope Leo’s environmental legacy?

11:00 – Role of religion and ethics in climate conversations

17:45 – Rabbi Jennie Rosenn explains Jewish concept of Dayenu

20:30 – What religious leaders can do that political leaders can’t

26:30 – Rosenn on deregulatory agenda of EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin 

37:45 – Iyad Abumoghli on how religion shapes human actions

40:30 – Al-Mizan’s origins and approach

51:00 – Faith and political leaders meeting to discuss the role of faith and values in facing climate change and climate justice

54:40 – Climate One More Thing

********

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The climate doesn’t care where emissions cuts come from; what matters is that the world transitions to renewable energy quickly and cheaply. If it’s significantly cheaper to install solar panels in India than on a rooftop in California, then isn’t that where they should be built? Similarly, transferring money directly to local people with the greatest stake in preserving their land can have outsized impact in conservation. Where does a climate dollar go furthest? 

Guests:

Kinari Webb, Founder, Health in Harmony

Premal Shah, Founder, kiva.org, renewables.org 

Nathaniel Stinnett, Founder and Executive Director, Environmental Voter Project

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

04:30 – Origins of Kinari Webb’s nonprofit Health in Harmony

09:00 – Rainforests as lungs and heart of the planet

12:00 – Radical listening to communities about what they need

15:00 – Positive outcomes from responding to community needs directly

18:00 – Webb’s near-death experience from a jellyfish sting

22:00 – Rainforest conservation as a giant climate lever

29:00 – Premal Shah describes how he came to create Kiva.org

32:00 – How Kiva.org works

35:30 – Thought experiment from moral philosopher Peter Singer

38:40 – Kiva tries to reframe stories of poverty as stories of entrepreneurship

41:00 – Applying crowdfunded microfinance model to renewable energy

46:00 – Idea of “effective altruism”

49:30 – Nathaniel Stinnett: we’ve been taught to blame ourselves for the climate crisis

53:00 – How to shift public actions to make climate more political 

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Joe Manchin grew up in the coal fields of West Virginia, the grandson of a miner and the son of a small-town grocer. His worldview was shaped by a place where energy isn’t an abstract policy debate; it’s the identity of the community and vital for economic survival. Manchin was portrayed as a bit of a villain in liberal circles for his role in blocking or slowing down Biden-era policy goals, including climate policy. Yet he was also the architect of the biggest climate legislation the country has ever enacted: the Inflation Reduction Act.

Now, in the midst of the Trump administration dismantling climate policy and basic political norms, Manchin is calling for a return to compromise and “common sense.” 

Episode Guests: 

Joe Manchin, Former US Senator, West Virginia 

Thomas Ramey, Commercial and Nonprofit Solar Evaluator, Solar Holler

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org

Highlights: 

00:00 - Intro

05:27 - Joe Manchin on his first senate run 

10:42 - Joe Manchin on Build Back Better

19:26 - Joe Manchin on how the Inflation Reduction Act was written 

22:51 - Joe Manchin on the dismantling of the IRA

27:21 - Joe Manchin on the effects of climate 

31:02 - Joe Manchin on West Virginia’s transition to clean energy 

37:10 - Joe Manchin on the state of the country 

38:10 - Joe Manchin on how to make the country better 

42:56 - Joe Manchin on working together 

44:20 - Thomas Ramey on growing up in West Virginia

50:08 - Thomas Ramey on how he talks about solar energy

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The UN climate convention known as COP30 is now underway in Brazil. As the nations of the world gather to discuss their efforts to rein in climate disruption, the facts are clear: we’re not doing enough, fast enough, to meet the Paris Agreement goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above preindustrial levels. Climate-fueled disasters are increasingly impacting nearly every part of the world.

And in Belém, Brazil, near the heart of the Amazon rainforest where the conference is being held, organizers have promised that Indigenous voices will play a bigger role than in the past. They’ve also billed this as an “implementation COP” where past promises will be turned into action. What practical steps can we hope countries achieve in this year’s negotiations?

Episode Guests:

Ilana Seid, Permanent Representative of Palau to the United Nations; Chair, Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS)

Davi Neustein, Sustainability Consultant; Advisor to Marcelo Behar, COP30 Special Envoy 

Deborah Sanchez, Director, CLARIFI (Community Land Rights and Conservation Finance Initiative), Rights and Resources Initiative
For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org.

Highlights:

00:00 - Intro

00:30 – Voters responding to energy and affordability in most recent election

02:00 – COP30 is happening in Brazil, opening remarks by UN leaders

07:00 – Major items on the COP30 agenda

10:30 – Davi Neustein on deliberate choice to hold COP30 in Belém

14:00 – Brazil can speak to Global South and Global North

19:00 – Neustein’s hopes for the COP30 action agenda

21:30 – Weeks before COP, Brazil approved new oil drilling in Amazon

27:00 – Ilana Seid shares climate impacts to her home nation of Palau

29:30 – What an “implementation” COP means

35:30 – Is there a need for a new narrative around climate change?

42:00 – Deborah Sanchez shares story of securing land rights for her community

47:00 – Example of a project funded through CLARIFI (Community Land Rights and Conservation Finance Initiative)

51:00 – How COP goal of elevating Indigenous voices is working out in reality

55:00 – What can we learn from the Amazon and how its managed

56:30 – Climate One More Thing

*****

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Fossil-fueled climate disruption is driving political instability around the world. The relationship between climate disasters and conflict are well-established — and also complicated. Even in war-torn regions like Israel and Palestine, people work across political and ethnic divides to address humanitarian and climate crises. The Arava Institute for Environmental Studies has helped bring together Israelis, Palestinians, Moroccans, and Jordanians to study and tackle shared environmental challenges. How does climate disruption reshape cross-border relations? And can climate cooperation become a force for peace?

Episode Guests: 

Peter Schwartzstein, Environmental Journalist; Climate Security Researcher

Fareed Mahameed, Assistant Director, Center for Transboundary Water Management, Arava Institute for Environmental Studies

Liana Berlin-Fischler, Associate Director, Center for Applied Environmental Diplomacy, Arava Institute for Environmental Studies

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org.

Highlights: 

12:42 Peter Schwartzstein on seeing the link between climate and violence

21:02 Peter Schwartzstein on the importance of governance 

22:56 Peter Schwartzstein on better governance examples

27:17 Peter Schwartzstein on the danger of climate induced violence in the US

31:13 Peter Schwartzstein on new paths for cooperation 

36:49 Liana Berlin-Fischler on moving to Israel 

37:59 Fareed Mahameed on “fixing the world”

42:16 Fareed Mahameed on being compelled to help 

47:05 Fareed Mahameed on figuring out what a community needs most 

51:30 Liana Berlin-Fischler on the Jumpstarting Hope in Gaza project

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Human-caused climate change is fueling extreme floods, wildfires, rising seas, and record-breaking heat all around the world. At the same time, some of the most senior U.S. government officials and other powerful actors are actively defunding climate programs, dismantling research institutions, erasing decades of environmental data, and launching direct attacks on climate professionals.

This week’s episode is about what it’s like to be a climate scientist, researcher, or environmental professional trying to do meaningful work in a country with a government that increasingly doesn’t want it. Many have faced harassment, threats, or dismissal — or live in fear that their funding will be frozen or cut. How does it feel to do climate work not just in an era of climate denial, but of deliberate climate erasure? 

Episode Guests:

Rachel Rothschild,  Assistant Professor, University of Michigan Law School

Brent Efron, Senior Manager for Permitting Innovation, Environmental Policy Innovation Center

J. Timmons Roberts, Professor of Environmental Studies and Sociology, Brown University

**For show notes and related links, visit ⁠climateone.org/podcasts.⁠

Highlights: 

00:00 – Intro

03:00 – Brent Efron on how he got into climate work

05:30 – Efron relates a casual date he had in DC

08:00 – Efron is contacted by Project Veritas, who plans to release a video they recorded of his comments about his work at the EPA during the date

11:00 – Hate and public backlash following his remarks, as well as the EPA

13:00 – Efron is contacted by EPA investigators and the FBI

17:30 – His new job in climate policy and how it feels to be doing that work again

21:30 – Rachel Rothschild explains climate superfund laws

25:00 – An organization uses FOIA to request Rothschild’s emails with environmental groups, then filed a lawsuit

32:00 – Personal and professional toll it has taken on her

37:00 – Needing to have threat monitoring

41:00 – How she thinks about her work as a teacher

42:30 – J. Timmons Roberts explains his work on links between offshore wind opposition groups and entities tied to fossil fuel interests

48:00 – Marzulla Law sends a letter to Brown University demanding Roberts’ work be redacted

52:30 – Universities in vulnerable position right now

58:45 – Why uncovering climate obstruction work is so important

59:45 – Climate One More Thing

***

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So much of the conversation about the climate crisis focuses on prevention. But no matter how well we succeed on that front, climate-induced disasters are already causing hundreds of billions of dollars of damage worldwide every year — not to mention destroying livelihoods and causing deaths. We're seeing those impacts today, and we need to be ready.

Adaptation does not mean giving up on trying to rein in heat-trapping pollution; it’s facing reality. The way we adapt can be creative and empowering. But what does that kind of adaptation look like? 

Episode Guests:  

Susannah Fisher, Principal Research Fellow, University College London; Author of "Sink or Swim"

Nick Mott, Multimedia Journalist; Author of “This Is Wildfire” 

Tanya Gulliver-Garcia, Director of Educational Impact, Center for Disaster Philanthropy

This episode features a field piece by David Condos, who originally reported the story for KUER in Salt Lake City, Utah.

For show notes and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/audio/adaptation-when-prevention-isnt-enough.

Highlights:

00:00 Intro

4:06 Susannah Fisher on her findings as a research student

7:43 Susannah Fisher on transformational changes

11:52 Susannah Fisher on the realities of climate migration

17:41 Susannah Fisher on the future of adaptation

22:47 Susannah Fisher on international cooperation

27:01 Susannah Fisher on surprising connections

30:35 Nick Mott on who is responsible for protecting your house

33:09 Nick Mott on the next level steps for protecting from wildfire

39:58 Field piece by David Condos on reusing sewage water

44:38 Tanya Gulliver-Garcia on what mutual aid is

48:20 Tanya Gulliver-Garcia on a mutual aid response to climate disasters

53:35 Climate One More Thing

***

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We know what needs to be done to ward off the worst impacts of global climate disruption: rein in heat-trapping pollution, reverse deforestation, build resilient systems. But how we do those things is the trick. Every second counts. The sooner we act, the more lives saved, the more jobs protected and the more futures secured. 

So how do we orchestrate the vast change we need in a short amount of time? World Resources Institute President Ani Dasgupta gives his honest take on the lack of progress since the Paris Agreement was signed 10 years ago — and maps a path forward.

Guests:

Ani Dasgupta, President and CEO, World Resources Institute (WRI); Author, “The New Global Possible”

Jonathan Foley, Executive Director, Project Drawdown

Nikhil Swaminathan, CEO, Grist

Highlights: 

00:00 – Intro

01:46 – Importance of the Paris Accords in terms of multilateralism

04:00 – Backlash to climate action 

07:00 – The market is producing the technology we need, but we also need to deploy them at scale

12:00 – How do we get companies producing the bulk of emissions to change course?

16:00 – Addressing climate disruption is a societal choice about what we value

20:40 – Why COP is essential and also disappointing and maddening

23:30 – Unpacking climate finance and why it’s so important

27:30 – Addressing justice isn’t a choice but an imperative when it comes to climate

31:00 – How to keep focused and remain optimistic in this current moment

37:00 – We have everything we need right now to solve climate change

41:00 – Project Drawdown’s analysis of what climate tools do and don’t work

45:00 – So many missed climate opportunities

52:00 – Tradeoffs of tools like batteries 

58:00 – Climate One More Thing

*****

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Today, we have a special episode to share with you from TED’s brand new podcast, Speed & Scale. Speed & Scale was created to help combat the doom and gloom that comes when thinking and learning about climate change. The hosts Anjali Grover and Ryan Panchadsaram interview experts from around the world on the measurable changes they’re making to combat the climate crisis and create a better future for the planet – and for those of us living on it. 

In this episode, Ryan and Anjali reflect on what to do about fossil gas, and they are joined by some incredible people coming up with bold solutions. The kind of solutions that save billions of dollars for energy companies – and consumers. Check out more episodes of the TED podcast Speed & Scale wherever you get your podcasts.

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For decades, hydrogen has held promise as a revolutionary tool in the clean energy transition. It can be a fuel and energy carrier, and when made with renewable energy and burned in a fuel cell, its only byproduct is water. President Biden’s administration invested billions into proposed clean hydrogen hubs. But as we’ve seen dramatic technological innovations and drastic price drops for solar and wind, lithium-ion batteries, and heat pumps — hydrogen may have gone from tomorrow’s technology to yesterday’s solution.

Experts say the best uses of green hydrogen come down to decarbonizing certain industries, like steel manufacturing and fertilizer. So where does hydrogen fit in the modern energy mix?

For show notes and related links, visit our website.

Episode Guests:

Eleanor Smith, Community Organizer, Tó Nizhóní Ání

Joe Romm, Senior Research Fellow, University of Pennsylvania, Penn Center for Science, Sustainability, and the Media; Author, “The Hype About Hydrogen”

Hilary Lewis, Steel Director, Industrious Labs

Highlights:

00:00 - Intro

04:04 - Eleanor Smith on learning about the Tallgrass Energy project

12:21 - Eleanor Smith on how the new projects fits in historically

16:45 - Eleanor Smith on opposition to the project

22:06 - Joe Romm on the uses of hydrogen

28:50 - Joe Romm on why there is still investments made in hydrogen technology

35:15 - Joe Romm on using renewables directly vs for hydrogen production

41:00 - Joe Romm on what people need to understand about hydrogen

46:32 - Hilary Lewis on how steel is made

47:42 - Hilary Lewis on the health impacts of the steel industry

51:59 - Hilary Lewis on current green steel projects in the US

56:40 - Hilary Lewis on projects that received federal funding

***

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Legendary primatologist Jane Goodall died on October 1. In a 2024 conversation on the Climate One stage with Co-Host Greg Dalton, the indefatigable Goodall was focused on three intertwined crises: biodiversity loss, climate change and environmental inequity. Her message from that night still resonates: Vote like your children’s lives depend on it — because they do. 

Guests:

Jane Goodall, Ethologist, conservationist

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org.

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Finding one's voice in climate action can come in many forms. Author and activist Taylor Brorby grew up in Center, North Dakota as a fourth-generation member of a fossil-fuel family. He struggled to find his place as a young gay kid who loved art, music, nature and poetry. Over time, he turned that tension into writing that challenges the fossil fuel industry, makes space for others stuck in a broken system, and inspires a more just future. 

Suzie Hicks felt the weight of climate concerns but after college, didn’t know what to do with those feelings. After doing an internship at the New England Aquarium, they realized they could merge their love of performing with a career focused on climate. With the help of a sunflower puppet named Sprout, Suzie created a children’s show that teaches kids about climate change through a frame of possibility and hope, not doom and gloom. 

Guests:

Taylor Brorby, Activist, Author, “Boys and Oil: Growing Up Gay in a Fractured Land”

Suzie Hicks, Climate Media Maker and Educator

– Intro

For show notes and related links, visit ⁠ClimateOne.org⁠.

***

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Within the federal government, science — especially climate science — has taken a beating. The Trump administration has moved from climate denial to climate erasure, firing thousands of career scientists across departments, rolling back established landmark protections, and undermining its own authority to regulate pollutants like carbon emissions. Even at the UN General Assembly, Trump referred to green energy as a “scam” and said climate science came from “stupid people.” 

But climate scientists aren’t all taking it lying down. From former EPA researchers to independent academics, many are heroically maintaining open-access databases and continuing fundamental research like the National Climate Assessment without the administration’s blessing.

Guests: 

Brandon Jones, President, American Geophysical Union

Wes Ingwersen, Lead, Cornerstone Sustainability Data Initiative

Rachel Cleetus, Senior Policy Director, Climate and Energy, Union of Concerned Scientists

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org.

Episode Highlights:

00:00 - Introduction

3:23 - Brandon Jones on how the Trump administration has treated science

6:35 - Brandon Jones on what’s next for scientists who were laid off

10:58 - Brandon Jones on continuing to collect climate data  

13:18 - Wes Ingwersen on the creation of USEEIO

22:24 - Wes Ingwersen on how EPA changed when Lee Zeldin took over

31:24 - Wes Ingwersen on when EPA employees decided to speak out

37:31 - Wes Ingwersen on taking his work to Stanford 

42:28 - Rachel Cleetus on DOE climate report 

51:27 - Rachel Cleetus on agency staff cuts

60:40 - Rachel Cleetus on how the scientific community is responding 

***

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The past few years have seen a seismic shift in energy and industrial policy in the United States. Under Biden, laws like the Inflation Reduction Act led to money pouring into clean energy manufacturing and deployment. The Trump administration has reversed course, cutting off incentives in instituting massive tariffs. 

As a result, entire clean energy projects have been put on hold or even canceled. Workers who were counting on those projects now face an uncertain future. This situation forces tough questions for unions: Where do they go from here?

Guests: 

Roxanne Brown, Vice President at Large, United Steelworkers 

Lee Anderson, Director of Governmental Affairs, Utility Workers Union of America

Lara Skinner, Executive Director, Climate Jobs Institute, Cornell University

Episode Highlights:

00:00 Intro

3:46 Roxanne Brown on the origins of USW’s environmental advocacy

5:50 Roxanne Brown on the effects of climate workers are feeling today

14:25 Roxanne Brown on how energy policy has affected USW members 

18:45 Roxanne Brown on climate messaging within USW

24:16 Lee Anderson on the jobs of utility workers

25:41 Lee Anderson on how climate has affected the safety of workers

30:54 Lee Anderson on UWUA’s input on current federal policy

40:15 Lara Skinner on what sparked a worker centered agenda on climate policy

42:36 Lara Skinner on the ups and downs of Climate Jobs New York’s work

48:57 Lara Skinner on creating state based coalitions

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org.

***

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Those standing up to climate and environmental injustice face challenges they weren’t seeing a year ago. But Gloria Walton, head of The Solutions Project, sees a bigger picture:

"The reality is that the same systems that created the climate crisis, whether that's colonialism, white supremacy, racism, and the patriarchy, those are the same ones that have harmed communities of color for generations,” she says. Her organization has channeled tens of millions of philanthropic dollars to grassroots efforts that build community resilience. 

Black Girl Environmentalist founder Wawa Gatheru is helping more Black girls, women, and gender-expansive people enter and lead in the climate space. She says the climate fight has shifted from education to action, with over 70% of Americans now understanding that climate change is real. So what should this 'action phase' look like?

Guests:

Gloria Walton, President & CEO, The Solutions Project

Wawa Gatheru, Founder & Executive Director, Black Girl Environmentalist

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

05:30 – Gloria Walton on the impact of the Altadena wildfires

10:30 – Walton’s work as an organizer in South Central LA

13:00 – Living with idea of abundance

19:00 – Finding and keeping your individual power within our democracy

21:00 – Work of West Street Recovery Project in Houston

22:30 – Developing local resilience hubs

24:00 – Reframing frontline communities as victors, not victims

27:00 – Channeling philanthropy to climate resilience and frontline communities

36:00 – Story of Hoʻāhu Energy Cooperative Molokai 

42:00 – Wawa Gatheru’s start in climate and environmental advocacy

44:00 – Not seeing herself in climate spaces

48:00 – Climate storytelling can offer nuance and move people 

55:00 – Work and growth of Black Girl Environmentalist organization

59:00 – Climate One More Thing

For show notes and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts

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Students are heading back to school, and in addition to all of the usual challenges of the school year, some children are carrying an extra weight: climate anxiety. Teachers are also swimming in tricky waters as conversations around the climate crisis — and renewable energy — become more polarized.

Yet there are educators who have worked to create resources for students and teachers, to help bring climate education into the classroom. The question is: How can schools, parents and teachers better help young people navigate the ideas and feelings around a warming planet? 

Guests: 

Margaret Wang-Aghania, Executive Director and Co-Founder, SubjectToClimate

Robin Cooper, Co-Founder and President, Climate Psychiatry Alliance

Melissa Lau, High School Environmental Science Teacher, Piedmont, Oklahoma

Leah Christenson, 2026 Piedmont High School Senior; Vice President, Piedmont High School Green Team 

Alyson Dennie, 2026 Piedmont High School Senior; President Piedmont High School Green Team

This episode features a field piece by Mary Catherine O'Connor, who originally reported the ⁠story⁠ for KALW Public Media. 

Highlights:

00:00 - Intro

3:33 - Margaret Wang-Aghania on her aha moment

5:42 - Margaret Wang-Aghania on how lessons get developed

12:33 - Margaret Wang-Aghania on teacher development

15:00 - Alyson Dennie and Leah Christenson on their climate related feelings

17:10 - Robin Cooper on how the emotions young people face because of climate

24:17 - Robin Cooper on how the moment the guides her thinking 

26:52 - Robin Cooper on how to know if a young person is dealing with climate anxiety

33:34 - Mary Catherine O'Connor’s Piece on Electric Buses in Oakland 

40:05 - Melissa Lau on the arctic trip that changed her life

44:33 - Melissa Lau on not being shy about teaching climate 

48:35 - Melissa Lau on the importance of relationship building

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org.

***

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According to one recent survey, Americans think about climate change more than abortion, immigration, or gun violence. And yet, while they care deeply about the issue, they don’t see it as a political issue. When asked by the Environmental Voter Project what actions should be taken to rein in climate disruption, those surveyed suggest taking small, personal steps, like recycling, over broader, political action, as they do with other top-of-mind issues. 

Where does this disconnect come from? And what will it take to shift the narrative from the personal to the political?

Guest:

Nathaniel Stinnett, Founder and Executive Director, Environmental Voter Project

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The climate doesn’t care where emissions cuts come from; what matters is that the world transitions to renewable energy quickly and cheaply. If it’s significantly cheaper to install solar panels in India than on a rooftop in California, then isn’t that where they should be built? Similarly, transferring money directly to local people with the greatest stake in preserving their land can have outsized impact in conservation. Where does a climate dollar go furthest? 

Guests:

Kinari Webb, Founder, Health in Harmony

Premal Shah, Founder, kiva.org, renewables.org 

Nathaniel Stinnett, Founder and Executive Director, Environmental Voter Project

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

04:30 – Origins of Kinari Webb’s nonprofit Health in Harmony

09:00 – Rainforests as lungs and heart of the planet

12:00 – Radical listening to communities about what they need

15:00 – Positive outcomes from responding to community needs directly

18:00 – Webb’s near-death experience from a jellyfish sting

22:00 – Rainforest conservation as a giant climate lever

29:00 – Premal Shah describes how he came to create Kiva.org

32:00 – How Kiva.org works

35:30 – Thought experiment from moral philosopher Peter Singer

38:40 – Kiva tries to reframe stories of poverty as stories of entrepreneurship

41:00 – Applying crowdfunded microfinance model to renewable energy

46:00 – Idea of “effective altruism”

49:30 – Nathaniel Stinnett: we’ve been taught to blame ourselves for the climate crisis

53:00 – How to shift public actions to make climate more political 

For show notes and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts

***

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The Trump administration has taken aim at green energy, but one technology has largely been left untouched: batteries to store wind and solar electricity. California alone surpassed 13GW of battery storage last year, and Texas has become the fastest growing market for the technology. But producing batteries isn’t without its downsides, especially when it comes to mining the necessary raw materials. The upside is that those materials can be recycled and reused. If the recycling technology can reach scale and price targets, the environmental impact would drop significantly. And spent EV batteries could become a grid scale storage site even without breaking down the battery packs. How soon before renewables plus batteries can power our grid 24/7?

This episode features a reported piece by Camila Domonoske that was originally broadcast on NPR’s All Things Considered on July 10, 2024 

Guests: 

Julian Spector, Senior Reporter, Canary Media

David Klanecky, President, Cirba Solutions

Sheila Davis, EV Battery Waste Strategist, Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives

4:08 - Julian Spector on what grid scale battery instillations look like

7:43 - Julian Spector on the success of battery deployment in 2024

14:14 - Julian Spector on the impacts of Trump’s new budget law 

20:06 - Julian Spector on the outlook for battery storage in the next decade 

24:09 - Reported piece on Ascend by Camila Domonoske

28:43 - David Klanecky on the battery recycling process

36:21 - David Klanecky on competing with China

41:45 - Sheila Davis on the biggest concerns about battery production 

44:56 - Sheila Davis on some of the risks posed by battery storage facilities

47:13 - Sheila Davis on the risk a battery recycling facility posed in New York
For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org.

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In 2013, 9-year-old Ella Roberta died from a severe asthma attack. She became the first person in the United Kingdom (and possibly the world) to have “air pollution” listed as the cause of death on her death certificate. Her mother, Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, founded the Ella Roberta Foundation and has become a global voice for clean air.

Globally, the World Health Organization says that air pollution is associated with 6 to 7 million premature deaths every year. Addressing the cause of these deaths would also go a long way to addressing climate disruption. And since talking about climate has become so politically fraught, should we reframe the conversation to focus on taking care of our air?

Guests:

Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, Founder, Ella Roberta Foundation

Sheila Watson, Deputy Director, FIA Foundation

Susan Joy Hassol, Director, Climate Communication 

Highlights:

(00:00) Intro

(03:00) Rosamund shares details of Ella’s young life and her early asthma attacks

(08:00) Ella becomes first person to have “air pollution” listed as cause of death

(13:00) Rosamund’s work sharing Ella’s story and raising awareness about air pollution

(20:30) How poisonous transportation emissions are and policy tools to reduce them

(26:00) Economic development does not need to sit contrary to healthy air 

(27:00) Dieselgate and the work of the True Real Urban Emissions initiative 

(31:00) Extreme heat can make air pollution more deadly

(37:00) Why we shouldn’t use the term "climate change” 

(43:00) Finding ways to connect with people on climate based on their priorities

(49:00) How to convey the seriousness of climate threats while also empowering people to feel that they can make a difference

(52:30) Climate One More Thing

For show notes and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/watch-and-listen/podcasts

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We’re all feeling the effects of the fossil-fueled climate crisis, but young people will not let this threat to their future go unchallenged. They’re taking it to the courts. In the last year, youth plaintiffs have had notable legal successes in Montana and Hawaiʻi, challenging that those states were violating their constitutional rights in continuing to burn fossil fuels. In Hawaiʻi, the ruling compels the state department of transportation to quickly move to a zero-emission system. 

But the biggest victory may have been outside of the U.S. The small island nation of Vanuatu led the charge to ask the International Court for Justice to grant a judgement on the legal obligation of countries to fight climate change. The judgment, released in late July, stated that countries do have a responsibility to address the climate crisis. Beyond their specific claims and remedies, these numerous cases ask: What do we owe our future generations, and how will we make good on those promises?

Guests: 

Vishal Prasad, Director, Pacific Islands Students Fighting Climate Change 

Julia Olson, Co-Executive Director & Chief Legal Counsel, Our Children’s Trust 

Rylee Brooke Kamahele, Youth Plaintiff, Navahine v. Hawaiʻi Department of Transportation

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Climate disruptions and growing risk are upending insurance markets, leading many insurers to abandon parts of the country all together. Due to fires, floods and other extreme events, more and more homeowners are facing rapidly rising premiums or being dropped from their insurance plans altogether. Increasing numbers of homeowners are taking refuge in the state insurance plans of last resort, straining the program resources. For homeowners, whose house is often their biggest financial asset, this creates a huge financial risk. 

So what should people do to evaluate climate risks and insurance availability during their housing search? And how can governments help insurers weather the increasing frequency of climate-induced disasters so they can continue to underwrite our homes?

Guests:

Rachel Cleetus, Senior Policy Director, Union of Concerned Scientists

Claire O’Connor, Los Angeles real estate agent and homeowner

Dave Jones, Director, Climate Risk Initiative at the Center for Law, Energy & the Environment, UC Berkeley 

This episode also includes a news feature produced by Camryn Sanchez of KJZZ in Phoenix.

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In a previous Climate One episode, we discussed the good, the bad, and the ugly impacts of artificial intelligence. But AI isn’t going away. Humans rarely give up a nifty new tool unless something better comes along. AI’s share of energy consumption is enormous, and the Department of Energy estimates that data center energy demands will double or even triple in just the next three years. Demand on fresh water is at least as big and isn’t talked about nearly enough. So, what can we do to reduce AI’s impact? 

Plenty of researchers have ideas — from site selection to energy efficiency to using zero-carbon sources of energy. But what will incentivize the AI corporations to take any of those actions?

This episode was supported by Climate One Steward Noel Perry and Next 10. This episode was recorded in March and originally aired April 4, 2025.

Episode Guests:

KeShaun Pearson, Executive Director, Memphis Community Against Pollution

Kate Brandt, Chief Sustainability Officer, Google

Irina Raicu, Director of the Internet Ethics Program at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics, Santa Clara University

On July 31, Climate One is hosting Premal Shah and Kinari Webb for a live episode recording! With years of experience navigating the global climate movement, the two are sure to offer unparalleled insights during their conversation with Co-Host Greg Dalton. Tickets for the show, which will be held at The Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, are available now through our website.

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Three years ago, Congress passed President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, the largest investment in climate action in U.S. history. The IRA set in motion a sweeping set of investments in nearly every aspect of energy and climate, mostly in the form of subsidies and tax credits, to boost domestic production of electric vehicles, batteries and carbon-free energy. Those investments have flowed to every state, but the majority have landed in Republican-held districts. 

In spite of that, Congressional Republicans nearly unanimously passed President Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” which the president signed on July 4. The megabill guts nearly all the program funds allocated under the IRA and slashes incentives and credits for solar, wind, energy efficiency and electric vehicles — precisely at a time when we need to dramatically scale up those sectors to address climate change. Why did Republicans let this bill move ahead? And how much will it exacerbate the climate crisis in the coming decades?

Guests:

Katherine Hamilton, Chair, 38 North Solutions

Clayton Aldern, Senior Data Reporter, Grist

Lisa Jacobson, President, Business Council for Sustainable Energy

John Szoka, CEO, Conservative Energy Network  

On July 31, Climate One is hosting Premal Shah and Kinari Webb for a live episode recording! With years of experience navigating the global climate movement, the two are sure to offer unparalleled insights during their conversation with Co-Host Greg Dalton. Tickets for the show, which will be held at The Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, are available now through our website.

Support Climate One by going ad-free! By subscribing to Climate One on Patreon, you’ll receive exclusive access to all future episodes free of ads, opportunities to connect with fellow Climate One listeners, and access to the Climate One Discord. Sign up today.

For show notes and related links, visit our website.

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Nature can feel distant from our everyday lives. Maybe it’s a place we visit on the weekends, a getaway from the hustle and bustle, something “out there,” just beyond the edges of our neighborhoods. But we are part of it, and as more and more people consider their impact on the Earth, sustainable practices are extending even to death, where green and natural burials are gaining popularity. 

Within the field of biomimicry, a design practice informed by what already exists in nature, innovators are exploring ways to sustain the ecosystems we’re surrounded by, rather than depleting them. Scientists have looked to butterfly wings to improve the efficiency of solar panels, and wetland plants to purify water in buildings. 

How can we build in a way that addresses climate concerns and has a softer impact on the environment in which it exists?

Guests: 

Janine Benyus, Co-Founder, Biomimicry Institute 

Emily Miller, Licensed Funeral Director and Embalmer; Founder, Colorado Burial Preserve

This episode also features field reporting from Producer Megan Biscieglia at Fernwood Cemetery and Funeral Home.

On July 31, Climate One is hosting Premal Shah and Kinari Webb for a live episode recording! With years of experience navigating the global climate movement, the two are sure to offer unparalleled insights during their conversation with Co-Host Greg Dalton. Tickets for the show, which will be held at The Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, are available now through our website.

Support Climate One by going ad-free! By subscribing to Climate One on Patreon, you’ll receive exclusive access to all future episodes free of ads, opportunities to connect with fellow Climate One listeners, and access to the Climate One Discord. Sign up today.

For show notes and related links, visit our website.

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When individuals want to take action on climate, it’s often in the form of electrifying a home, voting, or maybe even traditional activism. Those are very important, but we often overlook how individual skills and talents can also make a difference. 

This week we’re highlighting creative forms of climate action. Pattie Gonia is a drag queen, environmentalist and advocate for inclusivity and diversity in the outdoors who struts their message through national parks, in Pride events, and through the halls of Congress. Mike Roberts and Will Hammond Jr. wrote a sultry R&B song that will change the way you think about heat pumps… and an equally stimulating song about the power of geothermal energy. Together, they remind us that we don’t always have to take ourselves too seriously in order for our work to be meaningful and have impact.

This episode originally aired on February 7, 2025.

Guests:

Pattie Gonia, Drag queen; Environmentalist

Mike Roberts, Musician; Climate advocate

Will Hammond Jr., Educator; Musician

Pattie Gonia image credits Mitchell Overton and Maxwell Poth.

On July 31, Climate One is hosting Premal Shah and Kinari Webb for a live episode recording! With years of experience navigating the global climate movement, the two are sure to offer unparalleled insights during their conversation with Co-Host Greg Dalton. Tickets for the show, which will be held at The Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, are available now through our website.

Support Climate One by going ad-free! By subscribing to Climate One on Patreon, you’ll receive exclusive access to all future episodes free of ads, opportunities to connect with fellow Climate One listeners, and access to the Climate One Discord. Sign up today.

For show notes and related links, visit our website.

Ad sales by Multitude. Contact them for ad inquiries at multitude.productions/ads

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