Climate & Capital

Mr. Bill Sisson is executive director, North America, for the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, a 25-year-old alliance of more than 200 companies with $8.5 trillion of combined revenue who are committed to sustainable business. He explains how the principle of pre-competitive collaboration is helping companies  not only protect the environment, but weather global crises like the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have won the election, but what now? Will they be able to enact climate policy with a Republican Senate? Award-wining author, historian and Biden expert Jonathan Alter discusses the opportunities and challenges of the next four years. Also: Jared argues that the death of American political decency may actually indicate the healing of America itself. 

Dr. Michael Mann helped create the famous "hockey stick" graph in 1999, and it has earned him and his research two decades of vicious attacks from the right. He meets with host Jared Downing to discuss their tactics and how they can be stopped. Also: Climate Justice editor Howard Manly discusses the debate, and Jared waxes philosophical about the apocalypse. (Interview begins at minute 5:27. Jared's commentary at 28:50.)

Jimmy Carter turns 96 this week, and journalist and historian Jonathan Alter is celebrating his birthday with Carter's first ever full length biography. Alter argues that Carter was misunderstood but ahead of his time and how Biden could learn from his legacy — and his mistakes. Also: Zombie fires lurk in the Arctic, and why climate question was Joe Biden's best moment in the first presidential debate. 

The Rockefeller Brothers Fund has been divesting its $860 million fossil fuel portfolio. Fund board chair Valerie Rockefeller and fund president Stephen Heintz join us to discuss the legacy of John D. Rockefeller and the art of modern-day impact investing. 

Columbia engineer Jonathan Blutinger discusses his research into 3D printed meals and how the iPod-ification of cooking could protect the environment. Also, wildfires are getting worse, and climate change is to blame. After you listen, head to climateandcapitalmedia.com for our feature on a tech startup 3D-printing steaks and an Indian venture capital company connecting rural farmers with investors. 

COVID-19 has slammed shale oil and gas, and the "fracking" industry has turned to the Federal Reserve to stay afloat. But was fracking a bad investment from the start? Also in this episode: Alaskan salmon are getting smaller, and Biden's selection of Kamala Harris is a bold move against climate change. 

Harvard Business Review editor-in-chief Adi Ignatius discusses Environmental, Social, and Governance criteria, or "ESG." It's the new wave in responsible investing. But it's also subjective and oddly non-transparent. Could ESG be just another tool for empty corporate spin?

It's our pilot episode, and an introduction is in order. Climate & Capital Media founder Peter McKillop explains who we are, what drives us, and the "new climate economy"—a $26 trillion business landscape that could help save our planet.