Best Climate Leaders Podcasts (2024)

1
The Future of Chinese Solar, Battery Myths & Climate Politics | Ep174: Michael Liebreich & Bryony Worthington 1:02:58

13d ago1:02:58

1:02:58

In the final episode of Season 12, hosts Michael Liebreich and Bryony Worthington reflect on the key conversations and developments in the net-zero transition over the past three months, including: China's leadership in green finance and the role of air quality issues in driving climate action The rapid growth of the solar industry and its potentia…

1
The Solar Revolution - Past, Present and Future | Ep173: Jenny Chase 1:02:51

20d ago1:02:51

1:02:51

The solar industry has experienced a meteoric rise over the past two decades, growing from a small cottage industry to one of the leading technologies in the energy transition. It’s not been a smooth ride, and there’ve been plenty of bankruptcies on the way, from Solyndra to Suntech, but more than half a terawatt of new solar is now being built eac…

1
'This Is A Narrative War' - How To Win The Climate Argument | Ep172: John Marshall 56:10

20d ago56:10

56:10

Who are the merchants of doubt and how can their narrative be countered? How much money does it cost to get someone to take action on climate change? This week on Cleaning Up, Bryony Worthington is joined by John Marshall, the founder of the Potential Energy Coalition, a marketing firm that uses data-driven marketing techniques to accelerate the en…

1
The Climate Challenge is an Engineering Challenge - Ep171: Dr. Rosemary Barnes 59:12

27d ago59:12

59:12

This week on Cleaning Up, Michael Liebreich sits down with mechanical engineer and YouTube creator Dr Rosemary "Rosie" Barnes to discuss the critical role of engineering in addressing climate change. Rosie shares insights from her work developing clean energy technologies and her popular channel "Engineering with Rosie," where she tackles topics li…

1
The EV Revolution is Unstoppable - Ep170: Ben Nelmes 59:58

2M ago59:58

59:58

Electric vehicles are finally becoming more mainstream, but this hasn’t stopped a flood of negative stories and political attempts to scare people away from making the switch to better, more cost efficient vehicles. So is the EV revolution now inevitable? Bryony Worthington sits down with Ben Nelmes, the Chief Executive of New Automotive, a UK-base…

1
What a New UK Government Means for Climate and Energy - Ep169: Dr Simon Evans 1:13:54

1M ago1:13:54

1:13:54

With the UK general election tomorrow, the Cleaning Up team sits down with Dr Simon Evans of Carbon Brief to run through each party's manifesto, and what they say about UK climate and energy policy. With Labour widely predicted to win, will the UK's become an international leader on climate once more? How will GB Energy work? And where will all the…

1
Hot Rocks in a Box: The Rise of Thermal Batteries - ep168: Anand Gopal 57:54

2M ago57:54

57:54

As the world transitions away from fossil fuels, one of the biggest challenges is decarbonizing industrial processes that require consistent, reliable sources of energy to produce high-temperatures. Typically these processes run on fossil gas, but now thermal batteries offer a solution by using electricity to store renewable energy in the form of h…

1
Texas Hold'em: Playing Poker With Methane - Ep167: Grant Swartzwelder 1:30:35

2M ago1:30:35

1:30:35

Depending on who you ask, methane is either a useful transition fuel to a low-carbon future, or a super polluter. The science of methane says that for natural gas to have a lower climate footprint than other fossil fuels, particularly coal, there can be leakage of no more than 3.2% from end to end. Yet studies across the US show wildly different le…

1
Fake Meat, What’s The Beef? Ep166: Bruce Friedrich 1:05:53

2M ago1:05:53

1:05:53

Has science cracked the code on mass producing realistic meat substitutes? Or are lab-gown alternative proteins an impossible dream? In this week's episode of Cleaning Up, Baroness Bryony Worthington sits down with president of the Good Food Institute, Bruce Friedrich, to explore the future of food. Friedrich details his vision for a more sustainab…

1
Battery Recycling Is Here - But Where Are The Batteries? - Ep165: Hans Eric Melin 1:13:02

2M ago1:13:02

1:13:02

As everyone knows, battery prices are plummeting and manufacturing volumes are soaring, whether for EVs or for grid-connected storage. And everyone knows there's a problem: only 5% of lithium-ion batteries are recycled. The rest go to landfill, right? Wrong. This week's guest on Cleaning Up is the world's preeminent expert on battery recycling. Han…

1
#LightsOn - Live from the Eurelectric Power Summit 2024 in Athens - Ep164: Leonhard Birnbaum 51:56

3M ago51:56

51:56

Last week the leading lights of Europe's electricity industry gathered for the annual Eurelectric Power Summit at the Lagonissi Beach Resort just outside Athens. The conference - under the hashtag this year of #lights on - lasted two days and covered the key issues facing Europe's and the world's power sectors. Two topics in particular stood out: t…

1
Can Nuclear Repower China's Coal Fleet? - Ep163: Staffan Qvist & Dr. Yaoli Zhang 49:43

3M ago49:43

49:43

China's policies that direct capital towards cleaner industries have been game changing, and this week we're continuing the China theme, sharing two conversations Bryony had earlier this month at a conference at Xiamen University in Fujian Province. China's role in the clean energy transition could not be more important. The think tank Ember's late…

1
Audioblog 13: Clean Hydrogen's Missing Trillions 36:26

3M ago36:26

36:26

The 5th Hydrogen Energy Ministerial in Tokyo announced that by 2030, the world would produce and use 90 million tonnes of renewable and low-carbon hydrogen. Then, last year, the 6th Hydrogen Energy Ministerial not only reiterated the 90 million tonne target, but went further, promising that the overall market for hydrogen would grow to 150 million …

1
Australia's Political Trim Tab - Ep162: Simon Holmes à Court 55:16

3M ago55:16

55:16

Up this week is Simon Holmes à Court, the Australian investor and philanthropist with a passion for using data to change the world. In 2022, the federal elections in Australia delivered an upset, as around a third of the electorate turned their back on the established parties and voted in seven new independent MPs taking the total to 10. Simon was …

1
Lily Cole's Search for Model Climate Solutions - Ep161 1:00:35

3M ago1:00:35

1:00:35

How can we build a more united climate movement? What should be the role of geoengineering? And how can indigenous voices be brought into the climate conversation? Bryony puts these questions to model, actor, director, ambassador and businesswoman, Lily Cole. Lily's career began at age 14 when she was recruited as a model, pitching her into the hig…

1
Climate Arts 44:07

4M ago44:07

44:07

The sixth episode centres around the transformative power of the arts in addressing climate change and how the arts can open spaces for experimentation and innovation in imagining new realities and societal models that integrate ecological awareness and sustainability. The episode features Dr. Jen Rae and Sarah Suib. They discuss art and design hig…

1
Cultural Policy 39:03

4M ago39:03

39:03

The fifth episode explores what cultural policy is, its significance, and how it can influence societal change and play a role in social change, especially concerning climate and sustainability goals. The episode features Solveig Korum, Senior Advisor for Culture and Sustainability, and Rie Alkemade, Project Officer at the Cultural Relations Platfo…

1
Claiming Digital Spaces 30:05

4M ago30:05

30:05

In this episode, artist, writer, educator and activist Alistair Gentry talks about the relevance of storytelling, language and creative tech in framing climate issues in a way that inspires meaningful action. We’ll be delving into emerging technologies and how they are influencing the creative landscape, and opening up new opportunities for engagem…

1
Climate Communications 32:43

4M ago32:43

32:43

The effect of language, storytelling and rhetoric on attitudes towards sustainability is indisputable. Framing climate issues in a way that inspires meaningful action is important now more than ever. In this episode documentarian, campaigner and activist Syed Jazib Ali discusses what is needed to build authentic narratives and campaigns and project…

1
Relationships and Resilience 35:06

4M ago35:06

35:06

In this episode, Emma speaks to activist and artist Jessica Sim and communications professional Yula Rocha. They share experiences of how they have used research and data to understand the attitudes and behaviours of their audiences, and how they have used this information to create impactful and effective campaigns. They discuss the challenges the…

1
How China Became a Green Finance Superpower - Ep160: Dr. Ma Jun 1:05:38

4M ago1:05:38

1:05:38

Welcome to Season 12 of Cleaning Up! If you want a sense of the trajectory of climate action, you have to understand China, and you have to understand finance. There is no one better to share insights on both than Dr Ma Jun, Founder and President of the Institute of Finance and Sustainability in Beijing. Between 2014 and 2020, Dr Ma served as Chief…

1
Climate Justice 38:34

4M ago38:34

38:34

Climate change disproportionately affects different communities, and the fight for justice in the face of this crisis is essential. In this first episode host Emma Blake Morsi speaks to Julie’s Bicycle’s Farah Ahmed and academic and activist Vasna Ramasar for a deep dive into how practitioners, artists and activists use their talents and platforms …

1
Meet our host 5:43

4M ago5:43

5:43

In this bonus episode, show producer Diego Galafassi, host of the Creative Climate Leadership program Sweden and Scandinavia, speaks to Emmanuella Morsi, host of the 6-part series podcast. ★ Support this podcast ★By Hum Studio Interactive & Julie's Bicycle

1
Introduction to the Creative Climate Leadership Podcast 1:36

4M ago1:36

1:36

Welcome to the Creative Climate Leadership Podcast. A podcast series on the role of the arts in this time of converging crisis. Don't miss an episode and get in touch with us at ccl@juliesbicycle.com ★ Support this podcast ★By Hum Studio Interactive & Julie's Bicycle

1
Rounding Up Season 11 - Ep159: Michael Liebreich & Bryony Worthington 1:08:51

4M ago1:08:51

1:08:51

Bryony and Michael round up the eleventh season of Cleaning Up this week. They explore the themes running through the episodes, from theories of change to innovation, and discuss the things that surprised them, the moments they liked (or didn't) and reasons for optimism for the transition. Links: Ep149: Material World - Ed Conway: https://www.clean…

1
Absolutely Electrifying - Ep158: Saul Griffith 1:13:09

5M ago1:13:09

1:13:09

Michael chats with Saul Griffith, Australian-born engineer, inventor, advisor, author and 2007 MacArthur "Genius". He specialises in clean and renewable energy technologies, and has founded a dozen technology companies across 20 years in Silicon Valley, as well as authoring 3 books, including `Electrify', and `The Big Switch'. He has recently turne…

1
The Methane Hunters - Ep157: Dr. Sebastien Biraud & Sharon Wilson 1:08:16

5M ago1:08:16

1:08:16

Bryony speaks to two fascinating guests, both specialising in methane emissions, their causes and impacts: Dr. Sebastien Biraud and Sharon Wilson. Dr. Biraud is a biogeochemist, leading the Climate Sciences Department. Sebastien's work has taken him to the tropical rainforests of the Amazon, the great plains of the United States, and the Arctic tun…

1
Audioblog 12: The Five Superheroes of the Transition 39:39

6M ago39:39

39:39

This week, Michael presents the second part of his two-parter for Bloomberg New Energy Finance, exploring the bear and bull cases for the net zero transition. This week is the bull case: the "5 superheroes" of the transition, 5 forces/trends even more powerful than last week's "5 horsemen", which can prevail in the challenge of rapidly decarbonisin…

1
Audioblog 11: The Five Horsemen of the Transition 29:40

6M ago29:40

29:40

Michael is solo this week on Cleaning Up, outlining the "5 horsemen" of the net-zero transition - the five greatest obstacles to the net zero transition. These 5 horsemen are: the economics of energy solutions, the electrical grid, the demand for critical mineral, political and social inertia, predatory delay by the powerful incumbents. This audiob…

1
A Magnificent Woman And Her Flying Machines - Ep156: Bonny Simi 55:36

6M ago55:36

55:36

Bryony returns with Bonny Simi, President of Operations at Joby Aviation, where she's working on bringing to market a new civilian electric VTOL (eVTOL) aircraft. Prior to joining the team at Joby, Bonny held several operational and strategic roles at JetBlue Most notably, she founded and led JetBlue Technology Ventures, investing in improving the …

1
Extreme Electrochemistry for a Sustainable Future - Ep155: Prof Donald Sadoway 1:07:04

6M ago1:07:04

1:07:04

Michael returns to talk with legendary educator and inventor, Donald Sadoway, Professor Emeritus of Materials Chemistry at MIT. After earning his PhD in chemical metallurgy in 1977 at the University of Toronto, he joined the faculty at MIT where he spent 44 years. For 16 of those, he taught 3.091 (Introduction to Solid-State Chemistry)—and his anim…

1
Green Heat (And Cooling) Under Our Feet - Ep154: Tamsin Lishman 47:54

6M ago47:54

47:54

Tamsin Lishman joins Bryony this week to talk heat pumps. Tamsin is CEO of Kensa Group, a Cornwall-based manufacturer and installer of ground source heat pumps. Kensa is the UK's only manufacturer of ground source heat pumps. Both air source and ground source heat pumps are rapidly growing technologies, and Tamsin believes that Kensa's heat pumps c…

1
Shedding Light on Energy's Dirty Secrets - Ep153: Lauri Myllyvirta 1:10:24

7M ago1:10:24

1:10:24

Michael sits down this week with Lauri Myllyvirta, co-founder and lead analyst at CREA - the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air. After working as a campaigner and then as an analyst at Greenpeace, Lauri helped set up CREA, an NGO that produces research reports on the trends, causes, health impacts, and solutions to air pollution. Important…

1
Can We Have a Habitable Planet? - Ep152: David Wallace-Wells 1:13:26

7M ago1:13:26

1:13:26

This week, Bryony is back, this time to talk to David Wallace-Wells. David is an American journalist and author who often writes about climate change. His 2017 article "The Uninhabitable Earth" for New York Magazine was the publication's most-read article in history. David then turned the article into a book of the same name, which was chosen as Bo…

1
Redesigning Mining - Ep151: Mark Cutifani 1:11:08

7M ago1:11:08

1:11:08

This week, Michael's guest is Mark Cutifani, chairman of Vale Base Metals and formerly CEO of South African gold mining company, Ashanti, and British mining company, Anglo American. He was born and grew up in Wollongong, Australia. After leaving high school in 1976, he joined Coal Cliff colliery and enrolled in the University of Wollongong to compl…

1
Selling Sustainability - Ep150: Solitaire Townsend 1:02:51

7M ago1:02:51

1:02:51

Bryony returns in Season 11 this week, sitting down with her longtime friend Solitaire Townsend. Solitaire is Co-founder & Chief Solutionist at Futerra, and Trustee of the Solutions Union. She is a renowned sustainability expert and solutionist. From Google to the United Nations, Ikea to WWF, Solitaire works with the worlds’ most influential organi…

1
Material World - Ep149: Ed Conway 1:15:52

8M ago1:15:52

1:15:52

Kicking-off 2024 and Season 11 is Ed Conway. Ed is the Economics editor at Sky News, covering major UK and international economics, business and political stories. He is also economics columnist for The Times, and has been one of the longest-running economics editors in UK journalism, having started covering the sector in 2003. He is the author of …

1
The Second Coming of the Lord Turner - Ep148: Lord Adair Turner 1:07:57

8M ago1:07:57

1:07:57

For a second consecutive year-closer, Michael welcomes Lord Adair Turner of Ecchinswell back to Cleaning Up. Lord Turner has combined careers in business, public policy and academia. He chairs the Energy Transitions Commission, a global coalition of major power and industrial companies, investors, environmental NGOs and experts working out achievab…

1
Not the End of the World - Ep147: Dr Hannah Ritchie 1:02:34

8M ago1:02:34

1:02:34

Dr Hannah Ritchie is a data scientist and science communicator. Her focus is on the largest problems that shape our world, and how to solve them. Most of her work focuses on environmental sustainability, including climate change, energy, food and agriculture, biodiversity, air pollution and deforestation. She is Deputy Editor and Lead Researcher at…

1
Tackling Super Pollutants - Ep146: Jason Anderson 56:48

9M ago56:48

56:48

This week, Bryony speaks with Jason Anderson, Senior Program Director at ClimateWorks, who oversees the Governance & Diplomacy and Super Pollutant programs. His work spans efforts ranging from implementing the Paris Agreement to cleaning up dirty shipping and preventing methane leakage. Jason has over 25 years of experience in climate and clean ene…

1
The Bridgetown Initiator - Ep145: Prof Avinash Persaud 1:03:59

9M ago1:03:59

1:03:59

Professor Avinash Persaud is special envoy to the Prime Minister of Barbados Mia Mottley and emeritus professor at Gresham College in the UK. He, along with PM Mottley, helped design the Bridgetown Initiative in 2022 which laid out a path for reforming and ramping up the mobiliisation of climate finance to the developing world. The initiative has g…

1
Iron-Air Man - Ep144: Mateo Jaramillo 1:04:37

9M ago1:04:37

1:04:37

Mateo Jaramillo is Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Form Energy, a company developing, commercializing, and manufacturing breakthrough low-cost, multi-day energy storage solutions that will enable the electric system to be 100% renewably powered. Mr. Jaramillo was formerly Vice President of Products and Programs for Tesla’s stationary stor…

1
Is Shipping the Easiest "Hard-to-Abate" Sector? - Ep143: Johannah Christensen 50:48

9M ago50:48

50:48

This week, Bryony’s guest is Johannah Christensen, CEO of the Global Maritime Forum. The GMF is an international not-for-profit organization, committed to shaping the future of global seaborne trade to increase sustainable long-term economic development and human wellbeing. To do so, it facilitates a wide variety of initiatives and convenes key sta…

1
Metals Refining - From Mining to Brining: Ep142 - Alex Grant 44:46

10M ago44:46

44:46

This week, Michael is back in the host seat to talk to Alex Grant all about the groundbreaking work going on at Magrathea Metals. Alex is co-founder and CEO at Magrathea, developing a new generation of electrolytic technology for making magnesium metal. He was a Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree in Energy for 2021, and former Lithium Partner at Minviro wh…

1
Lifting the Curtain on Climate Change Denial - Ep141: Prof Naomi Oreskes 1:03:33

10M ago1:03:33

1:03:33

This week, Michael has invited his good friend Baroness Bryony Worthington to guest-host Cleaning Up! Bryony was the lead author of the UK’s ground-breaking 2008 Climate Change Act, and is now on sabbatical from her role in the House of Lords, where she has been scrutinising legislation. She’s now over in California. See the shownotes below for a l…

1
Power of Data, Data of Power - Ep140: Quentin Draper Scrimshire 39:33

10M ago39:33

39:33

This week, Michael’s guest is Quentin Draper-Scrimshire, co-founder and CEO of Modo Energy. Modo, founded in 2019, are accelerating the energy transition by enabling companies to make better, data-backed decisions hyper-focused on energy storage. Modo is used by 75% of participants in the GB market, with over 3000 subscribers. Quentin was formerly …

1
The Dane who Harnessed the Wind - Ep139: Henrik Stiesdal 1:02:17

11M ago1:02:17

1:02:17

This week, Michael’s guest is Henrik Stiesdal, former CTO of Siemens Gamesa and a pioneer of wind turbine technology. Nicknamed "The Godfather of Wind", this Danish inventor is behind many of the sector's most important innovations. He is responsible for over 175 inventions and is named in over 1,000 patents. Today, he runs Stiesdal, a startup whic…

1
Inside the World's Biggest Investor - Ep138: Carine Smith Ihenacho 49:38

11M ago49:38

49:38

This week, Michael’s guest is Carine Smith Ihenacho, Chief Governance and Compliance Officer at Norges Bank Investment Group. NBIM operate the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, created to ensure responsible and long-term management of revenue from Norway’s vast oil and gas resources. The fund is the largest single owner in the world’s stock ma…

1
Bags of Sustainability - Ep137: Anya Hindmarch 59:13

12M ago59:13

59:13

Cleaning Up is back for its 10th season, and to start proceedings in style, Michael's first guest is Anya Hindmarch. Anya is one of Britain’s most celebrated fashion designers and a leading voice in the industry on sustainability. Anya started her business in London in 1987 and now has 16 stores worldwide, as well as her own retail village in Pont …

1
From Moore's Law to Moo's Law - Ep136: Jim Mellon 51:50

1y ago51:50

51:50

This week's guest on Cleaning Up is entrepreneur, author and philanthropist Jim Mellon. Jim is Executive Director at Agronomics, one of the world’s leading investors in cellular agriculture, or lab-grown meat. Bypassing traditional agricultural methods with precision fermentation could have huge implications for CO2 emissions and the climate, and i…

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