Climate & Clean Energy Episodes

In Episode 126 , Quinn meets his newsletter heroes: Kim Zou & Sophie Purdom , co-founders of the independent media outlet Climate Tech VC. Kim works with Energy Impact Partners, a venture capital firm investing in climate technology. Sophie works as an investor in early stage climate technology businesses. Together they write Climate Tech VC , the data-obsessed, essential take on the opportunities, deals, and news in the flourishing climate tech scene. There is a massive cost that comes with tra...

In Episode 125 , Quinn asks: How can venture capital offer solutions to two of the biggest problems of our time? His guests are Vida Asiegbu and Anthony Oni, two incredible climate venture capitalists with Elevate Future Fund . Vida Asiegbu is a Principal within the Elevate Future Fund, working to make sure that the companies and organizations that they represent within their portfolio meet all of their goals and values. Anthony Oni is the Managing Partner of the Elevate Future Fund, part of Ene...

In Episode #123 , Quinn gets a masterclass on Snapchat AND running for office with RFS co-founder, returning guest, and our favorite human alive, Amanda Litman ! Amanda’s helped thousands of progressive young people run and get elected to office across the country. Now, she’s here to tell us how Snapchat can further save democracy, thanks to its fancy new partnership with her org. Snap it! (I don’t know if that’s what the kids say -- I’m so sorry) Have feedback or questions? Tweet us , or send a...

In Episode #121 , Quinn’s got a fantastic new guest to help answer his favorite question: “ What can I do? ” Isaias Hernandez – or, as he’s known pretty much everywhere on the internet, Queer Brown Vegan -- shares the mic today. He’s built a massive following using an intersectional approach to reach people through empathy and education. In this series, we look at how young people are using their passions and lived experiences to participate in this transformational moment in history. Isaias exe...

In Episode 120 , Quinn discusses retraining our mind to understand and operate in the discontinuity we are in. Let’s get META. HIs guest is Alex Steffen, a longtime climate reporter and futurist, as well as writer of the forthcoming book The Snap Forward . The world as we know it is changing – in fact, it’s already changed. The changes brought on by human-made effects on climate are now the context in which we live our lives. Whether you’ve been fighting the powers behind climate change for year...

In Episode 119 , Quinn asks: what’s in wildfire smoke, what does it do to your body, and how can you stay safe? Our guest is Dr. Mary Prunicki , the director of air pollution and health research at Stanford University under The Sean N. Parker Center for Allergy and Asthma Research. Her lab examines the impact of air pollution and wildfires on health – specifically, immune health. We’re going to talk about something timely: the wildfires ravaging the western side of the country, and the smoke tha...

In Episode 117 , Quinn discusses: how accountability works – and doesn’t – in the climate movement, how you can get involved, and how the best in the world are doing it. Our guests are Mary Annaïse Heglar and Amy Westervelt . The duo makes up Hot Take , a podcast and newsletter that gives an honest look at the climate crisis while providing some of the most empathetic voices in the climate justice movement. We’ve heard it again and again: the biggest barrier to climate action is political will, ...

In Episode 115 , Quinn & Brian discuss: How to stop fossil fuel advertising. Our guests are JaRel Clay and Jamie Henn. JaRel Clay is the Digital Director of Hip Hop Caucus, a national nonprofit focused on ending the climate crisis, having some fun, and tackling racial justice along the way. No big deal. Jamie is a climate activist, strategist, and communicator. He’s the Director of Fossil Free Media, a nonprofit communications lab to boost groups taking on the fossil fuel industry. Together, the...

In Episode 114 , Quinn asks: What are carbon offsets, and do they even work? Our returning guest is Akshat Rathi , a reporter at Bloomberg Green. Carbon offsets -- like our planet -- are so hot right now. And like our planet -- they kind of don’t work! So fun. But they could -- and while missions #1 to #11 are eliminate emissions, everywhere, we’ve gotta go negative at some point, so we might as well figure it out, and figure out how to scale them, like yesterday. You need them, I need them, we ...

In Episode 107 , Quinn & Brian discuss: How to buy clothing that lasts while not polluting the oceans or exploiting low-income workers. Our guest is Orsola de Castro , a fashion icon and the founder of Fashion Revolution , a collection of designers, producers, and consumers looking to heighten awareness of sustainability in the fashion industry -- from supporting the people who make our garments, to eliminating the microplastics destroying our oceans, bloodstreams, and hormones. The organization...

In Episode 102 , Quinn & Brian discuss: How to invest in defeating climate change. Our guest is: Boris Khentov , SVP of Operations & Legal Counsel at Betterment . If you’ve been reading or listening to our newsletter, you’ve already heard of Betterment, a financial advisory company and investment platform that recently introduced their Climate Impact portfolio — and if you haven’t heard of Betterment yet, start listening to the bonus audio newsletter episodes we release every Friday! This is a r...

In Episode 100 , Quinn & Brian discuss: Why state elections matter not just for your state but for the future of our planet. Our guests are: Aimy Steele & Amanda Litman. Aimy is a candidate for the North Carolina House of Representatives in District 82, a mother of five, a former Spanish teacher, and a former K-12 principal. Amanda is the co-founder and Executive Director of Run For Something, a PAC that is recruiting and supporting young progressives who want to run for state and local election...

In Episode #97 , Quinn digs into how we can rebuild capitalism for the world, for your company, and for yourself. Our guest is: Rebecca Henderson , Harvard professor behind the wildly popular class Reimagining Capitalism. Rebecca's research explores the degree to which the private sector can play a major role in building a more sustainable economy, focusing on the relationships between organizational purpose, innovation, and productivity in high performance organizations. Rebecca published Reima...

In Episode 96 , Quinn & Brian ask: How do we orchestrate a just energy transition for frontline low- and middle-income communities — from the inside out? Our guest is: Daphany Rose Sanchez , Executive Director of Kinetic Communities Consulting and fourth generation Brooklynite. Daphany advocates for energy equity and efficiency access in housing for New York City's low-income and immigrant communities. By working with energy and affordable housing industry partners, she helps New Yorkers save mo...

In Episode 94 , Quinn & Brian discuss: the most comfortable and sustainable shoes on the planet. Our guest is: Hana Kajimura , who leads the development and execution of the Allbirds sustainability program and strategy and is on a personal mission to make climate science fashionable. Allbrids was founded as a B-corp back in 2016, launching the world’s first wool shoes, which have been on Quinn’s feet pretty much the entire time since then. So are we shilling? A little bit. But we’re shilling *su...

In Episode 92 , we're headed off to climate school! Our guest is Anshuman Bapna , the creator (and headmaster) of Terra.do , which is like Hogwarts but for fixing the broken Earth. Of course, unlike Dumbledore, you can trust this headmaster won’t abandon you in your time of need. It seems so obvious that there should be a central (online) location where people can learn about climate change and how they can actually make a difference… but, until we learned about Terra.do, we didn’t even think ab...

To continue our Good News series, we’re looking back to Episode 78 , when Quinn & Brian discussed: Planning for chaos . (Cheery, right?) For real, though. This episode offers an actionable, helpful, revealing, and — dare we say it? — PLEASURABLE way of looking at the world. And that perspective comes from the delightful Bina Venkataraman , author of The Optimist's Telescope and the Editor of The Boston Globe’s editorial page. Fair warning, so you don’t get upset like Brian did: this is not a rea...

If you haven’t already heard, we received a Webby nomination for Best Podcast Episode in the Science & Education category. We’re really proud to be nominated again… but, we also really want to win. So, today, we’re re-airing the episode that received a nomination and asking you to help us with your vote . Back in Episode 70 , Quinn & Brian discussed: When things are broken, when the people who are working on those things are also broken, and why we need to help them. Our guest was Nikki Silvestr...

Cast your mind back to Episode 79 , when Quinn & Brian discussed: Optimism in the air (can it be?). Our guest is: Beth Gardiner , an environmental journalist and the author of Choked: Life and Breath in the Age of Air Pollution . The Guardian writes, “You couldn't ask for a better guide for ... concerned citizens,” which pretty much sums up our audience. We’re replaying this fan favorite during this crisis for two timely reasons: 1) breathing in pollution creates underlying conditions that drama...

In Episode 89 , Quinn & Brian discuss: Taking down the white guy who politically stabbed you (and the planet) in the back. Our guest is: Dr. Arati Kreibich. She gave us a call a couple weeks back to explain that she’s a freshman Councilmember in Glen Rock, a proud immigrant, a neuroscientist, a mother, and a grassroots organizer who is now running for Congress in New Jersey’s 5th Congressional District, because I GUESS THAT’S WHAT IT’S COME TO. In the last congressional election, Dr. Kreibich ca...

In Episode 88 , Quinn & Brian ask: You voted for clean energy… so why hasn’t it become a thing yet? Our guest is: Dr. Leah Stokes , author of the new book Short Circuiting Policy: Interest Groups and the Battle Over Clean Energy and Climate Policy in the American States She’s like Captain Planet if Captain Planet was a powerful woman with a Ph.D. in kicking polluters’ asses AND public policy. At the end of this episode, you’ll know exactly why your state is still building or spewing fossil fuels...

We’re back! In Episode 84 , Quinn & Brian ask: Is the USA responsible for climate refugees (and then turning them away)? Our guest is: Jessica Cisneros , a 26-year-old immigration and human rights attorney and proud Mexican-American woman running for Congress in Texas’ 28th district to fight for working families. Jessica’s opponent and the district’s incumbent is Henry Cuellar, “an anti-choice, anti-labor, pro-NRA Democrat who voted with Donald Trump and the Republicans almost 70% of the time la...

In Episode 83 , Quinn & Brian discuss: Blue carbon, the patriarchy, and how one of those two things has ruined the other (we’ll give you three guesses). Our guests are Dr. Sarah Myhre and Priya Shukla . Dr. Myhre is a leading voice in the fields of climate science, science communication, and public advocacy, as well as a Fellow with Project Drawdown and the Executive Director of the Rowan Institute. Priya is a PhD Student (AKA an almost-doctor) at UC Davis studying how climate change affects she...

In Episode 82 , Quinn & Brian discuss: How to fix our somewhat pressing land reconfiguration issues -- from 30,000 feet down to the soil under your feet. Our guest is Dr. Iara Lacher , a land use ecologist at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute. She is also the co-runner of a small nursery out of northwestern Virginia called Seven Bends Nursery. The work she does is based around sustainable planning and living, where they conduct the science to provide information for use in planning,...