Host Ed Whittingham continues the story behind the development of Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology and its potential role in helping to fight climate change. Ed explores the early days of Canadian cleantech company Carbon Engineering, and how it drew the attention of both Bill Gates and Occidental Petroleum. Guests include: Ken Caldeira, senior scientist at Breakthrough Energy David Keith, professor at the University of Chicago and a DAC pioneer who founded the company Carbon Engineering Subs...
Mar 11, 2025•28 min
Jesse Jenkins, David Keith, and Ed Whittingham break down the key policy reversals, their impact on U.S. emissions, and the broader geopolitical and economic consequences—for Canada and beyond. Plus, audience questions! Full Show notes with links to references on our website About Our Guest: Jesse D. Jenkins is an assistant professor and macro-scale energy systems engineer at Princeton University with a joint appointment in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and the Andlinger...
Mar 07, 2025•1 hr 6 min•Season 6Ep. 9
EvC co-host Ed Whittingham's new series on Carbon Dioxide Removal Host Ed Whittingham dives into the world of Direct Air Capture (DAC), a technology that extracts carbon dioxide directly from the ambient air. Ed explores the early history of carbon dioxide removal, why it could be useful in fighting climate change, and challenges the technology has faced along the way. Guests include: Klaus Lackner, professor at Arizona State University and often referred to as the “Grandfather of DAC” David Kei...
Feb 27, 2025•26 min
The race to remove carbon is on. This is the inside story. 🌎 Scrubbing the Sky: Inside the Race to Cool the Planet drops early March 🌎 This narrative podcast series takes listeners through one of the most ambitious climate efforts ever attempted: removing carbon from the atmosphere. Join EvC's co-host Ed Whittingham as he uncovers the story behind carbon removal —the companies racing to scale it, the challenges they face, and what it means for our future. 📲Subscribe on Apple: https://bit.ly/3...
Feb 21, 2025•2 min
Ed chats with four movers & shakers in Canadian climate philanthropy. On Nov. 13, 2024, nine prominent Canadian family foundations, including EvC's David Keith’s, announced a combined pledge of $405 million , all dedicated to accelerating Canada’s shift to a low-carbon economy. They touch on: Why this financial commitment occurred and why now The challenges facing climate advocacy today and in the near future What needs to succeed in the next 3-5 years How philanthropy should respond when go...
Feb 03, 2025•30 min•Season 6Ep. 8
Join David & Ed for a special end-of-2024 Ask-Us-Anything episode dedicated to your questions. Thanks to everyone who sent in your questions - we couldn't do it without you! Also, thanks to the Pembina Institute for help with an answer at 22:00 (reference link - Meeting the emissions cap-A feasible pathway for the oil and gas ). More show notes on our website. About Your EvC Co-Hosts: David Keith is Professor and Founding Faculty Director, Climate Systems Engineering Initiative at the Univer...
Dec 27, 2024•48 min•Season 6Ep. 7
𝘿𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙙 & 𝙀𝙙 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙗𝙚𝙨𝙩-𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙨𝙘𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚 𝙬𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙖𝙮𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝘿𝙖𝙫𝙞𝙙 𝙒𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙚-𝙒𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙨. It's a wide-ranging discussion covering everything from the potential fallout of the US election, shifting global interests and priorities, climate activism, China's role in climate and green energy technology, and as usual - listener questions for our guest. (01:27) US election fallout (09:33) Where do we sit globally on climate? (11:59) State...
Dec 10, 2024•53 min•Season 6Ep. 6
Support Energy vs Climate on #GivingTuesday Energy vs Climate is a labour of love – we hosts don't draw a salary from the show because we feel strongly about the public service benefit of the project. But, we still have production costs. So, we're asking one last time for you to please consider making a one-time or monthly donation in our only annual donation campaign . Thanks in part to last year's generous supporters, just yesterday we recorded a show with New York Times columnist David Wallac...
Dec 03, 2024•2 min
Climate Book Reviews is co-hosted by EvC's own Ed Whittingham and his friend Roger Thompson, Associate Dean and Professor of Writing and Rhetoric at Stony Brook University in New York. Each episode highlights some climate related books worth knowing about. This episode is an interview with New Zealand author Kirsten McDougall about her novel, She’s a Killer . At times hilarious and at other times troubling, the book is set in the not-too-distant future and features a near genius with sociopathic...
Nov 26, 2024•36 min•Season 6Ep. 5
David & Ed chat with University of Chicago's Michael Greenstone . Show Notes: (02:52) Engineering the Planet (03:25) The future of the Temperature–Mortality Relationship (04:48) Valuing the Global Mortality Consequences of Climate Change (07:36) Climate Damages and Adaptation Potential Across Sectors of the US (09:35) Heat Exposure & Poverty (11:30) Seasonality of Mortality Under Climate Change (13:59) Evaluating the 35°C Wet-Bulb Temperature Adaptability Threshold (15:30) Relationship B...
Nov 12, 2024•51 min•Season 6Ep. 4
𝗟𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝘁 𝗘𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗴𝘆 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗿𝘂𝗽𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀: 𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗧𝗘 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟰 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗗𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗱 𝗞𝗲𝗶𝘁𝗵 & 𝗘𝗱 𝗪𝗵𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗵𝗮𝗺 David and Ed hit the stage at the Energy Disruptors: UNITE 2024 summit in Calgary to discuss solar geoengineering, a major focus of David's academic research. Together, they unpack the technical and non-technical dimensions of solar geoengineering, including global governance and decision making. (00:45) Start of live show and topic introduction (04:49) What is So...
Oct 23, 2024•45 min•Season 6Ep. 3
Rethinking EV Charging A commonly held belief by new or prospective EV owners is that purchasing one requires the installation of a “level 2”, or 240 volt, home charger. Sara and Ed chat about recent University of Calgary research that challenges this assumption. They discuss considerations that might go into choosing which option is best for EV owners and people considering EVs, as well as the practical realities when it comes to charging, range anxiety - and pottery kilns. About Your EvC Co-Ho...
Oct 09, 2024•27 min•Season 6Ep. 2
We have a special climate politics focused show to open the new season. It's a time of elections here in Canada and the U.S. As multiple campaigns heat up, we’re asking, where does climate fit in as an issue? David Keith and Ed Whittingham chat with political strategist and co-host of The Strategists podcast, Stephen Carter , to understand where climate fits as a priority issue for voters. They discussed whether or not climate can still be a winning issue, how proponents of the consumer facing c...
Sep 27, 2024•48 min•Season 6Ep. 1
A personal message from EvC co-host Sara Hastings-Simon. You can find more information on cancer screening in Canada at the Canadian Cancer Society website . Send us a text (if you'd like a response, please include your email) Follow us on: LinkedIn Bluesky X/Twitter Instagram Energy vs Climate relies on the support of our generous listeners Donate to keep Energy vs Climate going Produced by Bespoke Podcasts...
Sep 04, 2024•1 min
Introducing Climate Now: Today, we are excited to bring you an episode from the Climate Now podcast. Climate Now , hosted by James Lawler , and accessible wherever you listen to podcasts as well as on their website - climatenow.com - is a podcast and newsletter that explores and explains the ideas, technologies, and policies we need to address the global climate crisis. The episode we’re sharing, " When insurers can no longer afford the risk ," features former Director of Investment Research at ...
Aug 20, 2024•27 min
Energy vs Climate is available wherever you get your podcasts. Produced by Amit Tandon Send us a text (if you'd like a response, please include your email) Follow us on: LinkedIn Bluesky X/Twitter Instagram Energy vs Climate relies on the support of our generous listeners Donate to keep Energy vs Climate going Produced by Bespoke Podcasts...
Jul 16, 2024•1 min
David, Sara, and Ed talk to Canada's Minister of Energy & Natural Resources, Jonathan Wilkinson. Show Notes: (02:57) Powering Canada Forward (04:24) Modernizing the energy sector (06:28) Powering Canada (07:46) Canada’s Electric Reliability Framework (11:30) Canadian Climate Institute (12:17) Mohawk Council of Kahnawake inks deal with Hydro-Québec (14:24) Governments of Canada, Nova Scotia & New Brunswick Show Progress Toward Phasing Out Coal by 2030 (16:25) Canadian Parliament Passes Bi...
Jul 03, 2024•59 min•Season 5Ep. 13
David, Sara, and Ed talk to Dr Benjamin Franta, Senior Research Fellow in Climate Litigation at the Oxford Sustainable Law Programme and the founding head of the Climate Litigation Lab. Show Notes: (01:05) Dr. Benjamin Franta (02:20) Nearly 15% of Americans deny climate change is real (02:25) The social anatomy of climate change denial in the US (02:50) Understanding the Shift in Media Perception Towards EVs (08:40) Climate litigation more than doubles in five years, now a key tool in delivering...
May 28, 2024•53 min•Season 5Ep. 12
Hosts David, Sara, and Ed chat with battery storage expert Dr. Shirley Meng of the University of Chicago. About Our Guest: Dr. Y. Shirley Meng is a Professor at the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering at the University of Chicago. She serves as the Chief Scientist of the Argonne Collaborative Center for Energy Storage Science (ACCESS) Argonne National Laboratory. Show Notes: (01:12) – Dr. Shirley Meng (02:12) – How Lithium Ion Batteries Work (02:22) – How sodium could change the game (02:24...
May 14, 2024•50 min•Season 5Ep. 11
Another BONUS Podcast Episode! The electricity file has been popping, especially in Alberta, where on a weekly basis a clash of worldviews on the future of electricity generation is on full display. About Our Guest Blake Shaffer is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics at The University of Calgary. He works on electricity markets, climate policy, and energy transitions, and frequently provides policy advice to governments at various levels. Show Notes (00:02:44) AB’s new renewabl...
Apr 24, 2024•48 min
New BONUS Podcast Episode Canada's consumer carbon tax policy has been getting a lot of press attention of late, especially following the $15/T increase that took affect on April 1, 2024. Much has been said about it across the political spectrum, some of it accurate, and some of it just plain wrong. David's away this month, so it's just Sara and Ed talking all things carbon tax with special guest Mark Jaccard . About Our Guest Mark Jaccard has been a prof at Simon Fraser University since 1986 sa...
Apr 09, 2024•59 min
Dr. Simon Evans, Deputy Editor & Senior Policy Editor at Carbon Brief join co-hosts David, Sara, and Ed, to tease apart EV fact from fiction. About Our Guest: Simon Evans is deputy editor and policy editor at Carbon Brief . Simon covers climate and energy policy. He holds a PhD in biochemistry from Bristol University and previously studied chemistry at Oxford University. Show Notes: (00:02:01) – Factcheck: 21 misleading myths about electric vehicles (00:04:59) – Electric vs. Gas Cars: Is It ...
Mar 29, 2024•53 min•Season 5Ep. 10
Co-hosts David, Sara, Ed, and energy/environmental economist Dr. Andrew Leach of the University of Alberta unpack the past, present and future of Canada's oilsands. About Our Guest: Andrew Leach is an energy and environmental economist and is Professor at the University of Alberta, with a joint appointment in the Department of Economics (Arts) and the Faculty of Law. His research spans energy and environmental economics. His most recent book is Between Doom and Denial: Facing facts about climate...
Mar 13, 2024•56 min•Season 5Ep. 9
Overview: What does the history of energy tell us about energy transition? Can we learn from the past or will we repeat the same mistakes? What do people get wrong when trying to extract lessons from the history of energy? Co-hosts David, Sara, and Ed are joined by guest, Dr. Petra Dolata, to discuss data on historical transitions, including lessons of deindustrialization in the Ruhr region of Germany on Season 5, Episode 8 of Energy vs Climate . About Our Guest: Petra Dolada is Associate Profes...
Feb 20, 2024•55 min•Season 5Ep. 8
What is the role of literature in the climate policy and technology discussion? How does the genre allow us to explore uncomfortable climate scenarios, including those to do with heat death and direct action? While ultimately successful, the path laid out in the book is very bumpy, volatile, and rife with violence – strikingly different from the smooth and orderly transition often offered up by politicians and techno-optimists. On S5E7 of Energy vs Climate, David, Sara, Ed, and New York Times be...
Dec 12, 2023•58 min•Season 5Ep. 7
Published each year, the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) World Energy Outlook (WEO) is a leading source of scenario-based analysis of global energy demand and supply. This year, as the global energy crisis shows signs of calming, the WEO finds a peak in fossil fuels before 2030 across all scenarios. The result has been met with skepticism by some politicians in Canada, with Alberta’s Premier Danielle Smith going so far as to question the credibility of the organization. A follow-on special r...
Dec 04, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Season 5Ep. 6
We are excited to bring you a special live taping of Energy vs Climate from November 22, 2023 at the Ampersand in Calgary. Energy vs Carbon Removal is a dive deep into this still relatively new climate mitigation pathway. The IPCC and other bodies increasingly view Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) as a critical tool to reduce CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere and bring warming back down to 1.5C by century’s end. It seems like new carbon removal start-ups are springing up weekly. But the barriers ...
Nov 30, 2023•1 hr 13 min•Season 5Ep. 5
What matters - and really doesn’t matter - when it comes to Building for Sustainability? David, Sara and Ed answer that question in a live episode of Energy vs Climate recorded on November 5, 2023 to kick off the Building for Sustainability symposium in Canmore, AB. EPISODE NOTES @00:3:30 Carbon sink and low-carbon building materials @00:5:30 Keeping The Heat In - Section 8: Upgrading windows and exterior doors @00:10:03 Spring Creek Mountain Village receives green energy certification @00:11:48...
Nov 10, 2023•51 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Long distance and interregional transmission lines promise to increase reliability, mitigate the impact of extreme weather events, and provide electricity consumers with access to low-cost resources. They are an important piece of the energy transition puzzle. But despite the well documented benefits of long-distance transmission, to date there has been limited progress in building out interties across North America. What lessons can we draw from the early days of renewable development that are ...
Oct 29, 2023•55 min•Season 5Ep. 3
Hey everyone, Ed here. David, Sara and Ed will be back next week with an episode about electricity interties in the clean energy system. Until then we’d like to share another podcast with you that we think might be of interest, called Challenging Climate . Hosted by Jesse Reynolds and Pete Irvine, Challenging Climate tackles tough questions about the science, technology, economics and politics of climate change. Their topics range from climate modelling, persuasive narratives, national security,...
Oct 20, 2023•50 min
