In this first episode in a new series on climate change and AI, Hamid Maher and Charlotte Degot, Managing Directors and Partners at Boston Consulting Group (BCG), explain how BCG has developed and uses AI tools to help their clients manage climate risks and address mitigation and adaptation challenges. They describe how they pitch these solutions to potential clients, and share their advice for those interested in careers in business and climate.

For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org.

Climate Rising Host: Professor Mike Toffel, Faculty Chair, Business & Environment Initiative

Guests:

●      Hamid Maher, Managing Director and Partner, Head of Africa, BCG

●      Charlotte Degot, Managing Director and Partner, Global Lead for CO2 AI, BCG

This special episode features a discussion on solving the challenges climate change poses to food & agriculture, recorded as part of the HBS Short Intensive Program on Accelerating Climate Solutions. HBS Senior Lecturer Eleanor Laurans interviews Alex Bondar, partner at Acre Venture Partners, and Rebekah Moses, Vice President of Impact Strategy at Iron Ox. They discuss climate tech and venture capital and the roles played by consumers, farmers, investors, and corporations.

For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org.

Host/Guests:

●      Eleanor Laurans, Senior Lecturer, Harvard Business School

●      Alex Bondar, Partner, Acre Venture Partners

●      Rebekah Moses, Vice President, Iron Ox

This bonus episode features Harvard Business Review’s Exponential View podcast, where Azeem Azhar interviews climate tech investor Shayle Kann, a partner at Energy Impact Partners. They discuss the challenges and opportunities of investing in the net zero economy and why Shayle prefers to frame it as deep decarbonization. They also cover what metrics venture capitalists should consider when investing in climate tech and how net zero electricity fits into solutions.

For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org.

Guest/Host:

●      Azeem Azhar, entrepreneur, investor, and host of Exponential View

●      Shayle Kann, Partner, Energy Impact Partners

This bonus episode features the Harvard Law School Environmental and Energy Law Program’s CleanLaw podcast, where professors Jody Freeman (Harvard) and Greg Dotson (University of Oregon) talk about the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act that was enacted in 2022. They discuss how the bill got passed, what the law contains, how its provisions connect to other climate-related laws, and how it seeks to accelerate the country’s deployment of clean energy and other efforts to address climate change.

For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org.

Guests:

●      Jody Freeman, Archibald Cox Professor of Law & Director, Environmental and Energy Law Program, Harvard Law School

●      Greg Dotson, Associate Professor, University of Oregon School of Law

Episode specific link

Nat Keohane, President of the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, discusses how companies participate in global climate talks and policy development, such as the recent UN Conference of Parties (COP) in Egypt. He also talks about what to expect as countries move from crafting climate agreements to implementation and what companies’ role is in that work. He also offers advice for those interested in careers in business and climate change. 

For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org.

Guest: Nat Keohane, President, Center for Climate and Energy Solutions

Grant Canary, CEO of DroneSeed, a startup company designed to accelerate reforestation after wildfires, shares his perspective on the landscape of nature-based carbon removal solutions and how DroneSeed has developed a business model to address both climate and financial risk. He also discusses how his venture capital background lends itself to tackling complex climate solutions and he offers advice for those interested in careers in business and climate change.  

For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org .

Guest: Grant Canary, CEO, DroneSeed

Shantanu Agarwal, Co-Founder and Director of Sustaera, a startup company developing a Direct Air Capture technology to remove carbon from the atmosphere, shares his perspective on the landscape in the race to develop scalable and affordable carbon removal technologies–from engineering to financing to deployment–and how Sustaera’s specific technology fits in. He also discusses how his entrepreneurial background led him to finding solutions for climate change and he offers advice for those interested in careers in business and climate change.  

For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org.

Guest: Shantanu Agarwal, Co-Founder and Director, Sustaera.

Jigar Shah, Director of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office, shares some of the technical and finance challenges and opportunities of carbon removal solutions, and shares how transitioning his private-sector energy finance background into government leadership has shown him how public-private climate tech partnerships could be improved. He also offers advice for those interested in careers in business and climate change.  

For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org.

Guest: Jigar Shah, Director, Loan Programs Office, U.S. Department of Energy.

Daniel Pacthod, Senior Partner and global co-leader of McKinsey Sustainability, shares how the company works with its clients to address climate risk and find opportunities through its pillars of net-zero strategy, green business building, decarbonization transformation, net-zero financial institutions, and sustainable investing. He also offers advice for those interested in careers in business and climate change.  

For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org

Guest: Daniel Pacthod, Senior Partner and global co-leader of McKinsey Sustainability, McKinsey & Company

Cate Hight, an expert partner in Bain’s Sustainability & Responsibility and Energy & Natural Resources practices, shares how the company’s strategy, operations, customer value, and transformation work help enable their consulting and private equity clients identify opportunities associated with climate change and mitigate climate risks. She also offers advice for those interested in careers in business and climate change. 

For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org.

Guest: Cate Hight, Expert Partner in Sustainability and Responsibility and Energy and Natural Resources practices, Bain.