Send us a text Let us know how we're doing - text us feedback or thoughts on episode content States have shifted to the forefront of climate leadership here in the US. And one of the tools that many of these States are employing to make it easier and less risky for individuals and companies to invest behind energy savings has been the Green Bank, a financial institution designed to overcome some of the barriers to financing climate action. Massachusetts set up their Green Bank in a novel way,...
Send us a text The demand for electricity continues to go up. But instead of relying upon utilities to build more dirtier gas and oil fired power plants, a more novel approach is emerging. These Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) aggregate together a number of residential or commercial buildings and adjust demand in order to keep the grid operating optimally. Paul talks with Courtney Blodgett, Co-Founder and Director of Strategy at Edo on how VPPs work and how Edo is helping commercial buildings be...
Send us a text In this episode, Paul sits with Stephanie Doyle, the California State Affairs Director for the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), to discuss the changes that California has implemented to their net metering tariff for rooftop solar. NEM 3.0 (or also known as the Net Billing Tariff (NBT)) has reimagined the solar market in California, dramatically reducing the compensation that homeowners receive for generating excess power while incentivizing investment into battery s...
Send us a text In order to meet the ambitious climate goals as enshrined in New York's Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA), the state is about to embark upon a far reaching program to ratchet down emissions from heavy emitters. The Cap and Invest program has a lot of similarities to RGGI and other Cap & Trade efforts, with some key nuances on how New York is planning on using this tool to transition to a clean energy economy. Karsten Barde, Director of US Policy and R...
Send us a text Philanthropic giving to climate related causes is woefully small. But charitable dollars have a really important role to play because of their flexibility and different motivations. They can catalyze investment in areas where private or governmental dollars can not. In this episode, Paul sits with Randall Kempner, Senior Advisor to the Aspen Institute to discuss the role of philanthropic dollars in the capital stack, why foundations and donors have not contributed as much, yet...
Send us a text Paul sits with Mike Roeth of the North American Council for Freight Efficiency (NACFE) to discuss the current state of trucking and how that industry is decarbonizing. Although trucks only account for 5-10% of the vehicles on the road, they contribute up to a quarter of the transportation sector's greenhouse gas emissions. But whereas challenges remain to fully decarbonize long haul, heavy duty trucking, Mike and Paul dig into the different use cases and opportunities that the...
Send us a text About 70% of New York City's emissions come from their buildings. So, getting a handle on this is super important. As one tool to enact, the city implemented Local Law 97 which not only requires buildings to become more energy efficient and, eventually, to reach net zero emissions - but the law ascribes penalties for properties that fail to meet the ratchet schedule. The first year that these penalties kick into effect is here in 2024. Paul sits down with Luke Surowiec of the ...
Send us a text It's been about 6 and a half years since Hurricane Maria laid waste to Puerto Rico's power grid. As the island continues its recovery, it is pioneering a more distributed, renewable and resilient power infrastructure that the rest of us can learn from. In this episode, Paul sits down with Javier Rua of the Solar and Energy Storage Association of Puerto Rico to talk about the recovery process and what's next for the island. For further reference: Javier Rua Puerto Rico Energ...
Send us a text Thermal Energy Networks are matriced assemblies of pipes and heat pumps where buildings can not only utilize the heat from the ground beneath us, but repurpose heat from the buildings around us to make certain we're not wasting anything. And, because of that, these systems may be a super efficient and cost effective means to decarbonize large swaths of cities and neighborhoods. Paul sits with Matt Rusteika, Director of Market Transformation at the Building Decarbonization Coal...
Send us a text In this episode, Paul is joined by DR Richardson and Jan Keleher of Elephant Energy to discuss the challenges of the residential heat pump market. With an array of federal, state and local incentives, a myriad of technology options, sizing requirements, electrical upgrade decisions and other factors that play into installing these units, Elephant Energy has found a niche as a "one-stop shop" in helping homeowners. We explore why business model innovations such as Elephant's ma...
Send us a text In this episode, recorded a few weeks ago, Paul sits with Catherine Atkin, co-founder of Carbon Accountable and one of the chief architects of California's new carbon disclosure law, SB 253. This legislation will, for the first time, require large companies doing business in California to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions. Paul and Catherine discuss the history of this groundbreaking law as well as the implications and impact that it could have on the climate c...
Send us a text In this episode, Paul sits down Ashley Allen, Chief Sustainability Officer of the plant-based company, Oatly, to discuss the food system and the impact food has on climate change. In addition to discussing what Oatly is doing to mitigate their impact on GHG emissions, the two also discuss how the company is helping farmers and suppliers adapt to changing climate conditions as well as how Oatly is supporting consumers in reducing their planetary handprint through more informed p...
Send us a text In this week's episode, Paul sits down with Kathy Loftus of Retail Business Services, the services company for Ahold Delhaize USA which includes supermarkets such as Food Lion, Stop & Shop, The GIANT Company, Hannaford and Giant Food. Kathy, RBS and the local retail brands of ADUSA are doing amazing work in helping to build sustainable supermarkets for the future. In addition to helping reduce operating emissions, ADUSA is also helping to drive down supply chain emissions. ...
Send us a text Not all of the energy challenges facing us are technical in nature. Equally important to scaling clean energy solutions are in lowering costs, investing in novel, newer technologies, and implementing processes that make it easy for consumers to transition. In this episode, Paul sits with Tom Chase from the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, MassCEC, to discuss how that organization is helping needed ideas come to market. And they take a bit of a deeper dive into what's needed ...
Send us a text The next decade could be that of battery storage. Boosted by new tax credits in the IRA, batteries are poised to become one of the most powerful tools in our tool belt for shifting to cleaner electricity. But storage isn’t just about storing solar power for use at night. They represent security, resiliency, flexibility and an opportunity for consumers to take advantage of utility programs designed to lessen the overall burden on the grid. Paul interviews Mike Goldman of Gener...
Send us a text In this episode, Paul sits down with Greg Stevenson of Consumers Energy to talk about the utility's challenges and opportunities when it comes to helping the small and medium sized business (SMB) market. SMBs are something of a forgotten middle in the energy transition - as so much focus has been on large companies or on residential homeowners, but Greg and his team are putting in the effort to segment and understand this market in order to better serve it. To find Greg on Lin...
Send us a text Not all renewable power projects are alike. A wind project placed next to another wind project may not have the same impact on reducing carbon emissions as one placed near a coal facility. The location and timing of when the renewable power is produced is important in order to truly maximize the impact. Enter Resurety, an analytics firm that is providing large commercial & industrial consumers of electricity with the data and insight needed to maximize the value from...
Send us a text The influx of VC money in the 2006-2011 timeframe ignited what is now known as Cleantech 1.0; a boom, and trough, that have some people worried that today's frothy investment cycle may be headed for another sharp correction. In this extended episode, Paul interviews Jon Guerster of Activate Capital to understand how VC firms are thinking about today's Climatetech 2.0 - and the risks and opportunities of investing into this huge market. Activate Capital - https://activat...
Send us a text Paul sits down with Joe Aamidor of Aamidor Consulting to discuss Smart Building Management Systems. The built environment is a huge contributor to global emissions. But energy efficiency and weatherization solutions can only go so far in reducing the carbon from these facilities. Smart Building Management Systems step in to optimize the remaining energy usage and support a further decarbonization. For those interested in learning more about smart buildings, here is the McKinse...
Send us a text In this extended episode, Paul interviews Molly Bauch, head of US Energy Transition Services for Accenture. The two discuss the challenges that residential homeowners and businesses have faced in their journey toward clean energy - and what will be needed as the impacts from the Inflation Reduction Act and Bipartisan Infrastructure Legislation start to be felt. Follow Paul on LinkedIn