Climate Tech Cocktails

šŸŖ©Disco,āš”ļøEnergy Efficiency, šŸš—EV Grid, šŸŽ¤Karaoke, and šŸ’”More

Fellow Climate Warriors, welcome to another episode of Climate Tech Cocktails!

Climate Tech Cocktails is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Ā 

Itā€™s all šŸøBombay Sapphire,šŸøCitadelle Gin, disco-balled cocktail shakers and Karaoke with Apoorv Bhargava, co-founder and CEO of WeaveGrid. A trailblazer in electrifying the future of EV grid integration, WeaveGrid is connecting automakers, utilities and drivers to tackle the challenges to and boost EV adoption across the industry. Featuring a stirring performance from Apoorv, this is one episode youā€™ll want to sit back, take a sip, and maybe even sing along to!

šŸŒ± Soil health,šŸ’”Agricultural innovation, šŸ¤Humanitarian Aid,šŸŒ±Carbon offset, andšŸ’„More

Fellow Climate Warriors, welcome to another episode of Climate Tech Cocktails!

Climate Tech Cocktails is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Ā 

Today, Matt is joined by Chris Tolles, Co-founder and CEO of Yard Stick, an organization that is revolutionizing the way farmers measure their soil by making it accurate, instant, and affordable. While Chris sips on a Gangster Duck, and Matt quaffs both a Sparkle Pony and A Brew Hope, their discussion unearths the importance of soil health, its role as a carbon sink, and Chrisā€™s fascinating journey from humanitarian relief worker to cutting-edge climate tech leader. So, go ahead, grab whatever beverage is calling your name right now, and letā€™s dig into the dirt together!

šŸŒ± Vertical Farmingāš™ļøConstruction Automation,šŸ’”Innovative Disruption Ā and šŸ’„ More!

Joining Matt and his Athenaeum Whiskey today is the man, the myth, the legend - and Mattā€™s dear friend and mentor - Jack Oslan. This fantastically successful co-founder of the two blockbuster start-ups, Plenty and Diamond Age, comes armed with some Maker's Mark Reserve to discuss both his personal and professional life. From growing up next to a corn field in small town Illinois to being a two-time Silicon Valley tech founder to building shelters for war torn Ukraine, Jack leads a nobly purposeful existence helping out those most in need, and you get to share in his extensive experience and wisdom here today.

Matt welcomes Stacy Flynn, CEO & Co-Founder at EVRNU, to the podcast this week to enjoy some impressive Willamette Valley Pinot Noirs, and to discuss everything from Happy Gilmore and Prince to the ways in which her company is reshaping fashion's environmental impact. Together, they review Stacyā€™s unique career trajectory and how it has her led to co-founding EVRNU - an industry leader ā€œconverting textile waste materials into ā€˜newā€™ engineered fibers, which can be recycled again and again.ā€

Weā€™re in a Manhattan state of mind this week as John Felts, Co-founder & CEO of Cruz Foam, bends an elbow, sharing the waves Cruz Foam is making in the sustainable packaging. Propelled by a deep connection with the ocean, powerfully forged in childhood, Johnā€™s journey from surfer to scientist and entrepreneur has inspired a mission to provide a natural, sustainable, and easily integrated alternative to styrofoam. Cruz Foam is setting ā€˜a new standard for what it means to be a sustainable product.ā€™

In this episode, weā€™re kicking back with a couple of diet cokes (one with gin šŸ˜œ)Ā  as we dive into the life history of Co-Founder and CEO of Modern Hydrogen, Tony Pan.Ā 

From Taiwan to Scotland to Harvard, the brilliant Tony Pan shares the path that led him to Modern Hydrogen. After working for Goldman Sachs, Tony springboarded into the world of climate technology. Tony and his colleagues are transforming the way we utilize natural gas by turning it into clean hydrogenā€“point source hydrogen, that isā€“to power industrial processes.Ā  Ā 

In this episode, we drink Bill Alebrtonā€™s version of the sneaky pete (rose + lager) with Cody Finke, co-founder and CEO of Brimstone.Ā 

Cody's chemically charged adventures will react with your curiosity.Ā  He shares his time spent on a commercial lobster boat, living in his car and a tent, hiking the countryā€™s mountains, and working on solving Indiaā€™s wastewater treatment challenge. A chemist by trade, Cody is now decarbonizing cement. Tag along to learn a little chemistry, and share in the hope of achieving carbon-neutral construction.

In this episode, we drink a couple beers with with Toby Kraus, Co-Founder and CEO of Lightship. Ā 

Toby, an EV OG, walks us through his love of the outdoors, his journey from Wall Street to Tesla, and how he helped build the first electric travel trailer. So pack a bag and join us as we hit the road to explore how Lightship is forging the future of the electric mobility industry.

In this episode, weā€™re grabbing a drink with Niyati Gupta, co-founder and CEO of Fork & Good.

Ever wondered how cultivated meat can help combat climate change? Or how hydroponics can revolutionize the way we look at food safety? This episode, we sit down with Niyati Gupta, the co-founder and CEO of Fork & Good, a startup pioneering new ways to address food safety and meet protein demands innovatively. Niyati takes us through her personal journey that brought her from Hong Kong to Harvard, from working with the Ministry of Agriculture in Nigeria to leading a vertical farming startup, ComCrop, in Singapore.

We're not just talking about farming and food safety though. We delve into the world of cultivated meat and its role in the battle against climate change. Niyati, with her experience in the agriculture sector and as the founder of Fork & Good, offers valuable insights into the challenges of food production. We also discuss the impact of African swine flu on the global hog herd and why innovation is so crucial in solving food security issues.

Fellow Climate Warriors, welcome to a very special episode of Climate Tech Cocktails.Ā 

Itā€™s been a minute since the first episode of Climate Tech Cocktails was released, 1,051,200 minutes to be exact (2 years).Ā Ā 

To celebrate this milestone, Team CTC asked Matt if heā€™d be willing to sit down and chat with his climate tech colleague and close friend, Ā Ryan Kushner.Ā 

Weā€™ve grown so much over the past two years, both online and in IRL. We wanted to provide an opportunity to learn more about Matt and his own founder journey.