Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) Undaunted by the death of climate legislation in the Senate this summer, U.S. Representative Edward Markey (D-MA) vows to reintroduce comprehensive legislation next year and guarantees its passage within a few years. “We have a responsibility to the rest of the world,” Markey says, “most of the CO2 which is up there is red white and blue.” Markey, chairman of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, concedes that events in the spring, including ...
Aug 16, 2010•1 hr 8 min•Transcript available on Metacast After BP: Climate Progress? Joe Romm, Editor, Climate Progress Senior Fellow, Center for American Progress It is “morally unconscionable” for the fossil fuel industry, and the politicians who carry their water in Congress, to stand in the way of action on climate change, says Climate Progress blogger Joe Romm. A Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress and former US Department of Energy official, Romm says California voters have an opportunity this November to defeat the forces seeking ...
Jul 20, 2010•1 hr 7 min•Transcript available on Metacast Shai Agassi: A Better Model? Founder and CEO, Better Place In conversation with Greg Dalton, Founder, Climate One INFORUM’s Next 21st Century Visionary Award Shai Agassi wants to tip a $3 trillion market – the market for miles. Agassi, the CEO and Founder of Better Place, said he plans to end oil’s stranglehold on the global economy by offering consumers access to miles in electric cars that will be cheaper,and more convenient, than the gasoline-powered cars they replace. Most large and startup ...
Jul 13, 2010•1 hr 6 min•Transcript available on Metacast Hot, Wet and Uncertain Wieslaw Maslowski, Research Professor, Naval Post Graduate School Will Travis, Executive Director, Bay Area Conservation and Development Commission Andrew J. Gunther, Executive Director, Center for Ecosystem Management and Restoration Greg Dalton, Commonwealth Club VP, Founder of Climate One, Moderator What do scientists predict the Earth will be like in a few decades? While imperfect and complex, computer models using historic data and forward projections suggest deterior...
Jul 12, 2010•1 hr 10 min•Transcript available on Metacast America’s Climate War Eric Pooley, Deputy Editor, Bloomberg BusinessWeek Why is the national conversation about America’s energy future so polarized? Who are the true believers, power brokers and climate-change deniers working the halls of power in Washington? The political story of global warming includes colorful characters from activists chaining themselves to bulldozers and powerful lobbyists in the West Wing of President Obama’s administration. Pooley had extensive access to Al Gore in writ...
Jun 25, 2010•1 hr 7 min•Transcript available on Metacast Merchants of Doubt Erik Conway, Historian, California Institute of Technology What do tobacco and fossil fuels have in common? A handful of scientists were able to obscure the truth about both threats to public well-being, according to author Conway. “Doubt is our product,” one tobacco executive reportedly said. Oil and coal companies borrowed a page from that playbook and have used it effectively to cast a cloud over climate science. The result? Opinion polls show that a falling percentage of A...
Jun 14, 2010•1 hr 3 min•Transcript available on Metacast Corporate Sustainability: A Sprint or Marathon? Dan Hesse, CEO, Sprint When every company claims to be a green leader, how can consumers know which ones really are? Hesse will share his insights on why sustainable growth is sound business and can offer a competitive edge in an industry expanding rapidly around the world. What are the energy and environmental impacts of the global wireless revolution? Sprint has introduced eco-friendly phones and placed in the top 20 of Newsweek magazine’s 2009 G...
Jun 11, 2010•1 hr 8 min•Transcript available on Metacast Drill, Baby, Spill Jim Boyd, Vice Chair, California Energy Commission Michael Brune, Executive Director, Sierra Club Dan Miller, Managing Director, The Roda Group Catherine Reheis-Boyd, President, Western States Petroleum Association What impact will the disaster in the Gulf of Mexico have on America’s energy supply? With the environmental and economic damage mounting daily, California has backed away from plans to drill off the West Coast. Will the United States also change course and shelve re...
May 21, 2010•1 hr 10 min•Transcript available on Metacast Reporter's Roundtable Are electric cars ready for prime time? And is California hitting the brakes on its climate legislation? Our reporter's roundtable discusses all these issues and more with environmental reporter Todd Woody and Craig Miller of KQED's Climate Watch. This program was recorded live on May 13, 2010 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
May 14, 2010•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast National Ocean Policy: Working to Protect Our Oceans and Resources Sarah Chasis, Director of Ocean Initiative, Natural Resources Defense Council Julie Packard, Executive Director, Monterey Bay Aquarium Michael Thuss, Director and Member, Texas Water Conservancy Association Warner Chabot, CEO, California League of Conservation Voters; Former Vice President, the Ocean Conservancy – Moderator The United States has ocean areas larger than any country in the world. The White House is considering a na...
May 14, 2010•1 hr 6 min•Transcript available on Metacast Youth Grabbing the Wheel: Young Leaders Speak Up on Driving Down Carbon Jason Bade, 19, Stanford Student; Co-director, Green Youth Alliance; California Climate Champion Gemma Givens, 19, UC Santa Cruz Student; Member, Indigenous Environment Network Shreya Indukuri, 16, Harker Upper School Student; Co-founder SmartPowerEd.org Alli Reed, UC Berkeley student; Real Food Challenge What would the move to a clean-energy economy look like if your kids were driving? Business and policy leaders often talk...
May 05, 2010•1 hr 5 min•Transcript available on Metacast Cap and Charade? Michael Shellenberger, Breakthrough Institute Kristin Eberhard, Legal Director, Western Energy and Climate, Natural Resources Defense Council Larry Goulder, Chair, Department of Economics, Stanford Would capping and trading carbon pollution create a prosperous clean energy economy? Or would it be a boondoggle for Wall Street and scammers in developing countries? While touted as a market-based way to put a price on carbon, cap and trade has been parodied by Jon Stewart as the sup...
Apr 26, 2010•1 hr 9 min•Transcript available on Metacast Forecast or Invent Our Energy Future? Vinod Khosla, Founder, Khosla Ventures; Former CEO, Sun Microsystems Predictions of peak oil and resource scarcity are driving investments in new energy and technologies. What will determine the winners and losers? What policies are needed to drive innovation and send proper price signals? Are incremental solutions such as hybrid vehicles helpful, or does the climate challenge require huge breakthroughs at the system level? This program was recorded in front...
Apr 21, 2010•1 hr 2 min•Transcript available on Metacast Global Warring Cleo Paskal, Consultant, U.S. Department of Energy Associate Fellow, Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House, London The changing climate now has the attention of military establishments around the world. Last year, for example, the CIA created a group focused on tracking the national-security implications of desertification, rising sea levels, population shifts and heightened competition for natural resources. What will the opening of the Arctic mean for Russian a...
Apr 19, 2010•1 hr 5 min•Transcript available on Metacast Fossil Fuels + Dependence = Security Risks? Vice Admiral Dennis McGinn, United States Navy, Retired What do military officers think about the United States’ reliance on oil? One group of retired brass concluded that it threatens economic stability and national security. Vice Admiral Dennis McGinn (retired) says the 12 people studied scientific data and energy models for more than a year and concluded that the Pentagon should clearly integrate energy and climate change into its strategy and opera...
Mar 30, 2010•1 hr 4 min•Transcript available on Metacast Is Your God Green? Reverend Sally Bingham, Interfaith Power and Light Senior Rabbi Stephen Pearce, Temple Emanu-El What would Jesus say about climate change? What does the Torah say about stewardship of God's creation? Leaders from different religious traditions discuss how their respective philosophies and scriptures guide their approach to today's energy challenges. They'll also address how congregations around the country are getting involved in the movement to build a cleaner energy future. ...
Mar 25, 2010•1 hr 5 min•Transcript available on Metacast Geo-engineering: Global Salvation or Ruin? Ken Caldeira, Professor, Global Ecology, Carnegie Institution Albert Lin, Professor, UC Davis School of Law David Whelan, Chief Scientist, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems Should humans address man-made rising temperatures and sea levels by tinkering further with Mother Nature? A lively debate about such geo-engineering burst into the mainstream recently with reference to Caldeira’s work in the final chapter of the popular book SuperFreakonomics. Now t...
Feb 24, 2010•1 hr 11 min•Transcript available on Metacast After Copenhagen: What Now? Emily Adler, Partnership Director, Alliance for Climate Education Louis Blumberg, Director, California Climate Change, The Nature Conservancy Tony Brunello, Deputy Secretary for Climate Change and Energy, California Natural Resources Agency Leslie Durschinger, Managing Partner, Terra Global Capital Caitlin Grey, Student, Alameda High School Dan Jacobson, Executive Director, Environment California AG Kawamura, Secretary, California Department of Food and Agriculture Br...
Feb 03, 2010•1 hr 6 min•Transcript available on Metacast Chris Martenson: Oil, Water and Climate A former employee of the International Energy Agency told the Guardian newspaper recently that figures about worldwide oil supplies are exaggerated. That supported what peak oil adherents such as Martenson have been saying for years. In addition to oil, he discusses how the intertwining effects of the economy and environment will coalesce to shape a future radically different from the past. This program was recorded in front of a live audience at the Commo...
Jan 28, 2010•1 hr 5 min•Transcript available on Metacast The King of Coal, Prince of Wind? Dave Freudenthal, Governor of Wyoming With America’s largest deposits of coal and uranium, Wyoming sends massive amounts of energy to California and the rest of the country. Governor Freudenthal is trying to chart a new path for an extraction state where half the people don’t believe global warming is real. He’s looking to cleaner ways of using coal and believes natural gas is a winner, for fueling transportation or generating electricity. Wind power also holds ...
Jan 25, 2010•1 hr 6 min•Transcript available on Metacast Sun Up: Scaling Solar Power in California Bob Epstein, Founder, Environmental Entrepreneurs Mike Peevey, Chair, California Public Utilities Commission Mike Splinter, CEO, Applied Materials Nancy McFadden, Senior Vice President, PG&E Solar power is surging in popularity as a renewable energy source, yet still remains a small part of California’s overall energy supply. How will this situation change, in light of a state plan calling for a massive scaling up of renewable sources by 2030? What facto...
Jan 21, 2010•59 min•Transcript available on Metacast Climate One in Copenhagen Segment One Arnold Schwarzenegger, Governor, California Huang Ming, Founder and CEO, Himin Solar (one of China's largest renewable energy companies) Segment Two Rajendra Pachauri, Chair, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Caio Koch-Weser, Vice Chair, Deutsche Bank As the tumultuous climate negotiations in Copenhagen near the end, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger says it is embarrassing that the US does not have a national climate policy as do many of the...
Dec 17, 2009•1 hr•Transcript available on Metacast The Future of Cars and the Auto Industry James Lentz, President/COO, Toyota, USA, Inc. Toyota is known for creativity and a commitment to sustainable development, but is it enough in today's ultra-competitive globalized car industry? Come hear the unique perspective of industry veteran Lentz, who launched the innovative Scion brand in 2001, on what automakers are doing to ensure vehicles are a benefit, not a burden, to society and what future designs may be on the horizon. This program was recor...
Nov 20, 2009•1 hr 6 min•Transcript available on Metacast India: Deal Maker or Deal Breaker? India plays a critical role in the global climate chess game. It’s hard line stance has been softening slightly recently as the Copenhagen negotiations approach. What is India’s approach to the international negotiations? What are the prospects for reforming its electricity sector? How is clean technology faring in India now? These questions are addressed by Varun Rai, a Research Fellow at Stanford University’s Program on Energy and Sustainable Development, and...
Nov 13, 2009•31 min•Transcript available on Metacast Saving Civilization Is Not a Spectator Sport Lester Brown, President, Earth Policy Institute Brown sees concern in the merging of world food and energy economies. Putting corn ethanol in gas tanks and grain-intensive food (beef) into more human bellies will drive up commodity prices and exacerbate fresh water scarcity. Though he believes the Earth is under stress, Brown is hopeful, in part because for the first time since the Industrial Revolution we have begun investing in energy sources that c...
Nov 13, 2009•1 hr 8 min•Transcript available on Metacast Down to the Wire: Confronting Climate Collapse David Orr, Professor, Environmental Studies and Politics, Oberlin College Due to our refusal to live within the Earth’s natural limits, we now face a multitude of problems that will have a severe negative impact on human civilization. Orr, an expert on environmental literacy and ecological design, further argues that political negligence, an economy driven by insatiable consumption and a disregard for future generations are only adding to our pletho...
Nov 13, 2009•1 hr 4 min•Transcript available on Metacast What’s Science Got to Do with Climate Change? Stephen Schneider, Professor of Interdisciplinary Environmental Studies, Stanford Greg Dalton, Founder, Climate One What risks does the changing climate pose to the global economy and how can we manage those risks? Rather than betting so much on a cap-and-trade regime for carbon pollution, Schneider says policymakers should fund more research to invent our way to a greener economy. This program was recorded in front of a live audience at the Commonwe...
Nov 05, 2009•1 hr 6 min•Transcript available on Metacast A World Without Ice: Man’s Impact on Climate Change Henry N. Pollack, Ph.D., Professor of Geophysics, University of Michigan It has taken just three centuries for human growth and rising industrial economies to bring the delicate relationship between ice and humans to a dangerous precipice. Ice carved Earth’s landscape to its present state – the sharp Alpine peaks of Europe, the vast Great Lakes of North America, the majestic valleys of Yosemite National Park and the deeply incised fjords of Nor...
Nov 05, 2009•1 hr•Transcript available on Metacast Tim Flannery Chairman, Copenhagen Climate Council; Author, Now or Never: Why We Must Act Now to End Climate Change and Create a Sustainable Future Greg Dalton, Founder, Climate One - Moderator One of the world's leading scientists and notable climate experts offers a pragmatic roadmap of the environmental challenges we face in dealing with climate change and the potential solutions toward sustainable living. Rather than looking backward and assigning blame, Flannery offers a powerful argument fo...
Nov 05, 2009•1 hr 2 min•Transcript available on Metacast EPA + You = A Greener Future Lisa Jackson, Administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency After winning higher auto fuel economy earlier this year, what are the EPA’s next big priorities? In her first visit to California as the country’s chief environmental regulator, Jackson will lay out her vision for cleaning up America’s air, water and land. What are her plans on toxics, mining and other hot-button issues? And with climate legislation winding through Congress, what is her view on a nati...
Oct 02, 2009•1 hr 8 min•Transcript available on Metacast