Fossil vs Future

We often finish a recording and think of more things we wish we’d said. Or something happens days after that would have been key to mention. 

In this episode, James and Daisy catch up on those “missing pieces” from 2026 so far. How might the Iran war impact the energy transition? What is on the COP31 Action Agenda? What happened at the first conference on Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels? 

“Sunlight has to travel 93 million miles to reach the Earth, but none of those miles go through the Strait of Hormuz.” – Bill McKibben.

SOME RECOMMENDATIONS: 

• Outrage + Optimism (2026) – Listen to this podcast episode on how the Iran crisis proves just how dangerously dependent the global economy is on fossil fuels. 
• Michael Liebreich (2026) – The Electrification Staircase is a framework that tries to answer the question: “What should we be rolling out right now at speed, versus treating like a pilot or a trial for commercialisation in coming decades”.
• Holcim Foundation – An independent non-profit organisation dedicated to accelerating sustainable construction worldwide. Holcim UK, alongside the Holcim Innovation Centre in Lyon, has produced a net zero concrete using an innovative mix containing biochar produced from coppiced wood and spent coffee grounds collected from Canary Wharf coffee shops.
• FT (2026) – Piece by Pilita Clark on “the messy, chaotic and possibly quixotic quest to phase out fossil fuels.”

OTHER ADVOCATES AND RESOURCES:

• IEA (2026) – The IEA’s Executive Director Fatih Birol says the combined impacts of the disruption to oil and gas flows through the Strait of Hormuz and attacks on energy infrastructure across the Middle East amount to "the greatest threat to global energy security in history." Around 25% of the world’s seaborne oil trade transited the Strait in 2025. About 80% of oil and oil products transiting the Strait in 2025 was destined for Asia.  
• WRI (2026) – Describes how countries with abundant clean energy are faring better with the fuel shortages and price spikes caused by the Iran war. 
• Ember (2025) – Analysis showing how growth in emerging markets turbocharged global EV sales in 2025. 
• The Guardian (2026) – Last year, Ethiopia became the first country to ban imports of combustion engine vehicles. Now, Ethiopia sees roughly 115,000 EVs on its roads out of a total of 1.5m cars in the country. 
• Data Center Watch – A research project that tracks grassroots opposition to data center development across the United States.
• NY Times (2026) – The “hyperscalers” have forecast spending $710 billion on data centers across North America in 2026. However, according to Data Center Watch, at least $156 billion across 48 projects with publicly disclosed values was blocked or stalled amid coordinated local opposition in 2025.
• UNFCCC (2026) – COP31 President-Designate Murat Kurum’s first letter outlining the 2026 Action Agenda and naming Sally Higgins as Youth Climate Champion.
• FT (2026) – Sir Christopher Hohn’s hedge fund TCI has dumped almost all of its $8bn stake in US software giant Microsoft, telling investors that artificial intelligence poses a threat to the company’s dominant software products.
• Carbon Brief (2026) – A summary of the first summit on ‘transitioning away’ from fossil fuels which saw 57 countries – representing one-third of the world’s economy – debate practical ways to move away from coal, oil and gas. Countries including China, Russia, the US, and India were not invited.

Thank you for listening! Please follow us on social media to join the conversation: 

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Music: “Just Because Some Bad Wind Blows” by Nick Nuttall, Reptiphon Records. Available at https://nicknuttallmusic.bandcamp.com/album/just-because-some-bad-wind-blows-3

Producer: Podshop Studios

Huge thanks to Siobhán Foster, a vital member of the team offering design advice, critical review and organisation that we depend upon.

Stay tuned for more insightful discussions on navigating the transition away from fossil fuels to a sustainable future.

To mitigate climate change, we must reduce new emissions. But what about the greenhouse gases already in the atmosphere? And what about the emissions that we can’t easily reduce with existing technologies? 

In this episode, James and Daisy discuss carbon dioxide removal (CDR). How is it done? What does it cost? And do we really need it?

SOME RECOMMENDATIONS: 

• The State of CDR – Reports on the state of progress. Nearly 2.1 billion tonnes of CO₂ are already being removed annually, but around 7–9 billion tonnes are needed by mid-century.
• CDR.fyi – Provides trusted insights and analytics on durable CDR orders, projects, and financings across the carbon removal market.
• Counteract – Backs early-stage founders fostering innovation in carbon removal. 

OTHER ADVOCATES AND RESOURCES:

• IPCC – CDR refers to technologies, practices, and approaches that remove and durably store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. It only refers to human activities that intentionally remove CO2 (not natural CO2 removal such as natural forest growth). 
• RMI (2023) – CDR approaches can be sorted into three categories: (1) Biogenic CDR (plants); (2) Geochemical CDR (minerals); and (3) Synthetic CDR (energy). 
• WRI (2026) – Outlines six carbon removal methods. Note: carbon removal is different from carbon capture and storage (CCS), which captures emissions at the source (a form of emission reduction).
• RMI (2024) – Five charts showing how much CO2 we need to remove from the atmosphere. 
• CDR.fyi (2026) – Approximately $3.6B in private capital was invested in CDR companies between 2021 and 2025, with Direct Air Capture (DAC) accounting for ~61%.
• Climeworks – A Swiss company specialising in DAC and storage (DACCS) technology. 
• 1PointFive – Once operational, the STRATOS facility in Texas aims to capture up to 500,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.
• XPRIZE – The XPRIZE Carbon Removal competition is a $100 million global challenge intended to accelerate scalable solutions for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. The 2025 winner was Mati Carbon, who use enhanced rock weathering – spreading crushed basalt on smallholder farms in India – to lock CO₂ as bicarbonate for millennia while enhancing soils and boosting crop yields.
• BCG (2025) – Smallholder farmers in India that work with enhanced rock weathering providers have seen ~20%–30% higher yields and ~30% lower fertilizer use, resulting in nearly 20%–25% higher household incomes. 
• ESG Today (2026) – Microsoft signed agreements to remove 45 million metric tonnes of CO2 in 2025. By comparison, Frontier Buyers coalition (the second largest purchaser) has purchased around 1.8 million tonnes to date. Microsoft has confirmed that their carbon removal program has not ended but that at times they may “adjust the pace or volume” of procurement. 
• Frontier Climate – An advance market commitment to buy an initial $1B+ of permanent carbon removal between 2022 and 2030. It was founded by Stripe, Alphabet, Shopify, Meta, McKinsey and tens of thousands of businesses using Stripe Climate.
• Responsible Investor (2025) – SBTi allows high quality removals to be used for residual emissions (capped at 10% of total emissions).
• Interface – Created the first-ever carbon negative carpet tile. 

Thank you for listening! Please follow us on social media to join the conversation: 

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You can also now watch us on YouTube.

Music: “Just Because Some Bad Wind Blows” by Nick Nuttall, Reptiphon Records. Available at https://nicknuttallmusic.bandcamp.com/album/just-because-some-bad-wind-blows-3

Producer: Podshop Studios

Huge thanks to Siobhán Foster, a vital member of the team offering design advice, critical review and organisation that we depend upon.

Stay tuned for more insightful discussions on navigating the transition away from fossil fuels to a sustainable future.

This is part two of our collaboration with Bula COP31! We recommend listening to part one first.  

This November, Türkiye hosts COP31 with Australia leading the negotiations. In this cross-continental episode, James and Daisy are joined by Jack Whelan and Heidi Dumesich (hosts of Bula COP31!) for an intergenerational conversation on what we hope to see from this year’s conference. What will make it onto the Action Agenda? What is the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty? And what should the COP31 closing speech say? 

SOME RECOMMENDATIONS: 

• BulaCOP31! – To learn more about what it means for Australia and Türkiye to co-host COP31, listen to Jack and Heidi’s podcast.

OTHER ADVOCATES AND RESOURCES:

• COP31 – Türkiye will be the formal COP31 President while Australia will serve as the President of Negotiations.
• COP30 (2026) – The Action Agenda is the space for actors who do not negotiate, but who are essential for implementation. The COP30 Action Agenda was organized around six thematic pillars and the “Five Year Vision” established a framework to guide the acceleration of Paris Agreement implementation between 2026 and 2030. 
• Climate Watch – 62 countries have yet to submit updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
• Pacific Resilience Facility – The first Pacific-led, member-owned and managed regional financing facility. 
• The Guardian (2026) – A leaked draft of the COP31 Action Agenda includes 14 items but omits mention of fossil fuel phaseout, prioritising “zero waste” and “tourism and cultural heritage” instead.
• Dialogue Earth (2025) – Türkiye is one of the world’s largest electric arc furnace steel producers and Australia is the world’s biggest iron ore exporter.
• Ember – In 2024, Türkiye’s renewable electricity generation (156 TWh) outpaced Australia’s (98.8 TWh).
• The Fossil Fuel Treaty Initiative – An alliance of nation-states and civil society working to secure a global just transition from coal, oil and gas. 18 nations have already joined. 
• UN – The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) is a landmark international treaty whose objective is to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and weapons technology, to promote cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and to further the goal of achieving nuclear disarmament and general and complete disarmament.
• Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels – Colombia and the Netherlands will co-host this conference in Santa Marta (24-29 April 2026) as a space for countries, subnational governments and other stakeholders that recognize the need to implement a transition away from fossil fuels in a just, orderly and equitable manner, in line with climate goals and the best available science.
• IEA (2025) – Fossil fuels still comprised 10% of Colombia’s GDP and 45% of total exports in 2024. 
• The Belém Declaration – An agreement supported by 35+ countries aiming to accelerate green industrialization.
• Earth Negotiations Bulletin (ENB) – The flagship publication of the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) on UN environment and development negotiations. 
• UNFCCC – Article 6 of the Paris Agreement enables international cooperation to tackle climate change and to unlock financial support for developing countries.
• COP30 (2026) – In this letter, COP30 President Corrêa do Lago proposes a “two-tier” model for multilateralism: one anchored in consensus, and one focused on implementation.
• WEF (2026) – Prime Minister of Canada, Mark Carney, made a special address at Davos: “We know the old order is not coming back. We shouldn't mourn it. Nostalgia is not a strategy, but we believe that from the fracture, we can build something bigger, better, stronger, more just.”

Thank you for listening! Please follow us on social media to join the conversation: 

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You can also now watch us on YouTube.

Music: “Just Because Some Bad Wind Blows” by Nick Nuttall, Reptiphon Records. Available at https://nicknuttallmusic.bandcamp.com/album/just-because-some-bad-wind-blows-3

Producer: Podshop Studios

Huge thanks to Siobhán Foster, a vital member of the team offering design advice, critical review and organisation that we depend upon.

Stay tuned for more insightful discussions on navigating the transition away from fossil fuels to a sustainable future.

COP 31 will be held in Antalya, Türkiye, from 9 to 20 November 2026. While Türkiye will serve as host country, taking responsibility for the logistics and operations of the conference, Australia will lead the negotiations. To ensure Pacific interests remain at the heart of the summit, the Pre-COP will be hosted in Fiji, supported by the Government of Australia. This represents an unprecedented opportunity to bring the world to the Pacific to experience climate impacts and solutions firsthand.

In this collaborative, cross-continental episode, James and Daisy are joined by Jack Whelan and Heidi Dumesich, hosts of Bula COP31!, for an intergenerational conversation about the COP process. 

For this first instalment, James is in the hot seat to share his learnings from what he’s seen on the ground at previous COPs. How can the COP presidency influence outcomes? How does geopolitics shape climate diplomacy? Is it time for structural reform of the process? 

SOME RECOMMENDATIONS: 

• BulaCOP31! – To learn more about what it means for Australia and Türkiye to co-host COP31, listen to Jack and Heidi’s podcast.

OTHER ADVOCATES AND RESOURCES:

• COP31 – Türkiye will be the formal COP31 President, handling all operational and logistical requirements, and the conference and the World Leaders Summit will be physically hosted by Türkiye in the city of Antalya. However, Australia’s Minister for Climate Change and Energy, Chris Bowen, will serve as the President of Negotiations. This role is vested with "exclusive authority in relation to the negotiations," covering the agenda, draft texts, and appointment of co-facilitators. This arrangement was devised to avoid a prolonged diplomatic impasse, which would have automatically defaulted the conference to Bonn, Germany, risking a year without focused political negotiation leadership.

• Alliance of Small Islands States (AOSIS) – An intergovernmental organization representing small island nations on climate issues.
• BINGO (Business and Industry Non-Governmental Organizations) represents a formal constituency of business and industry observers at the UNFCCC. 
• The Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) – Founded in 1971 as the South Pacific Forum (SPF), PIF is an 18-member inter-governmental organisation which brings the region together to address pressing issues and challenges. 
• The Carbon War by Jeremy Leggett – This book is an eyewitness account of the climate talks, and the way the fossil-fuel vested-interests (the “carbon club”) tried to derail them.

• The Precautionary Principle – A decision-making approach that emphasizes taking preventative measures when there's a reasonable possibility of harm, even if scientific evidence is not fully conclusive.
• UNFCCC (2017) – Just weeks before it hosted COP23, Fiji announced the issuance of a sovereign green bond, raising FDJ 100m (USD 50m) to support climate change mitigation and adaption.
• UNFCCC (2018) – Talanoa is a traditional word used in Fiji and across the Pacific to reflect a process of inclusive, participatory and transparent dialogue. At COP23 (2017) under Fiji’s Presidency, the Talanoa Dialogue was launched, inviting everyone to engage in finding a solution. 

Thank you for listening! Please follow us on social media to join the conversation: 

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You can also now watch us on YouTube.

Music: “Just Because Some Bad Wind Blows” by Nick Nuttall, Reptiphon Records. Available at https://nicknuttallmusic.bandcamp.com/album/just-because-some-bad-wind-blows-3

Producer: Podshop Studios

Huge thanks to Siobhán Foster, a vital member of the team offering design advice, critical review and organisation that we depend upon.

Stay tuned for more insightful discussions on navigating the transition away from fossil fuels to a sustainable future.

Although we often focus on carbon dioxide, a group of powerful pollutants is also driving a large share of today’s warming…
 
In this episode, James and Daisy talk about super pollutants. Why are they important? Why are they worse for the climate? How can we reduce their use?
 
SOME RECOMMENDATIONS:
The Global Methane Pledge (GMP) – Launched at COP26 by the EU and the US, the GMP now has 160 participants who agree to take voluntary actions to reduce global methane emissions by at least 30% from 2020 levels by 2030, potentially eliminating over 0.2ºC warming by 2050. Methane has caused 30% of warming since the Industrial Revolution.
The Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) – A voluntary partnership of over 200 governments, intergovernmental organizations, businesses, scientific institutions and civil society organizations committed to protecting the climate and improving air quality by reducing short-lived super pollutants (methane, black carbon, tropospheric ozone and hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs)). The CCAC drives efforts to implement known practices and existing technologies that can achieve global reductions of at least 40% of methane by 2030 (vs 2010); 70% of black carbon by 2030 (vs 2010); and 99.5% of HFCs by 2050 (vs 2010).

OTHER ADVOCATES AND RESOURCES:
UNEP (2024) – Interactive cartoons explaining the science of super pollutants. 
UNEP – Parties to the Montreal Protocol (2016 Kigali Amendment) agreed to phase down HFCs by 80-85% by the late 2040s.
CCAC (2024) – Super pollutants are a “flow” problem (controlling how fast the planet warms) whereas carbon dioxide is a “stock” problem (controlling the maximum extent of warming).
CCAC – Methane has an atmospheric lifetime of 12 years (much shorter than CO2) but per unit of mass, has a warming effect 86x stronger than CO2 over 20 years and 28x over 100 years.
UNEP – The International Methane Emissions Observatory (IMEO) launched the Methane Alert and Response System (MARS) at COP27– the first public global satellite detection system providing actionable methane emissions data.
PR Newswire (2026) – A group of companies including Amazon, Autodesk, Figma, Google, JPMorganChase, Salesforce, and Workday announced a $100 million Superpollutant Action Initiative.
Carbon Brief (2025) – Super pollutants are responsible for around 45% of global warming to date, as well as millions of premature deaths each year. Human-caused methane emissions come from: (1) Agriculture (~40%), such as from livestock and rice production; (2) Fossil fuels (~35%), as a by-product of fossil fuel extraction, storage and distribution; and (3) Waste (~20%), from food and other organic materials decaying in landfills and wastewater.
UK Government (2025) – The UK’s Methane Action Plan notes that UK methane emissions have reduced by 62% between 1990 and 2023.
IPCC (2023) – “Global Warming Potential (GWP) is an index measuring the radiative forcing following an emission of a unit mass of a given substance, accumulated over a chosen time horizon, relative to that of the reference substance, CO2.”  National Grid (2025) – Sulphur hexafluoride (SF6) has a GWP of 24,300 and an atmospheric lifetime of 3,200 years. 80% of the SF6 used globally is in electricity transmission and distribution.
European Commission – The EU Methane Regulation (EU/2024/1787) entered into force on 4 August 2024. It aims to reduce methane emissions into the atmosphere, both in the EU and in global supply chains, and to minimise leaks of methane by fossil energy companies operating in the EU.
EMSA – From 1 January 2026, the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) has incorporated methane and nitrous oxide for maritime transport.

Thank you for listening! Please follow us on social media to join the conversation: LinkedIn | Instagram | TikTok

You can also now watch us on YouTube.

Music: “Just Because Some Bad Wind Blows” by Nick Nuttall, Reptiphon Records. Available at https://nicknuttallmusic.bandcamp.com/album/just-because-some-bad-wind-blows-3

Producer: Podshop Studios

Huge thanks to Siobhán Foster, a vital member of the team offering design advice, critical review and organisation that we depend upon.

Stay tuned for more insightful discussions on navigating the transition away from fossil fuels to a sustainable future.

With International Women’s Day on 8 March, this episode explores both the disproportionate impact of climate change on women and the critical role women play in driving climate action.

In this episode, James and Daisy discuss and celebrate women. How are women disproportionately affected by climate change? And why are they central to climate solutions?

SOME RECOMMENDATIONS: 

• Women Leading on Climate (WLOC) – A global coalition of women leaders. Women are 2.5x more likely to demand government climate action, twice as likely to engage civically, and 60% more likely to use their voice for good. 
• Project Drawdown – Makes the case for recognizing family planning and girls’ education as effective long-term climate adaptation strategies.
• Conciliation Resources (2024) – A workshop in Nigeria found women often show greater climate adaptability, partly due to exclusion from conventional inputs. Women farmers used manure fertiliser amid unpredictable weather, while men typically used harmful pesticides women cannot access.

OTHER ADVOCATES AND RESOURCES:

• International Women’s Day – 2026 theme: ‘Give To Gain’. 
• UN – Women aged 25-34 are 25% more likely than men to live in extreme poverty.
• UN – Women make up the majority of the world’s poor, who are highly dependent on natural resources. Women and children are 14x more likely to die than men in climate disasters. In wealthier societies, women drive 70-80% of consumer purchasing decisions.
• UN (2025) – One study found a 28% rise in femicide during heatwaves. 
• UN Women – Women carry out at least 2.5x more unpaid household and care work than men.
• UN Women (2025) – As of September 2025, 29 countries have women Heads of State and/or Government (32 women total). 
• FAO (2023) – Women produce 60-80% of the food in most developing countries.
• EIB (2023) – Countries with more women in Parliament are more prone to ratify environmental treaties. Companies with more women on boards are more likely to improve energy efficiency, reduce firms’ overall environmental impact and invest in renewable energy. At COP26, men held 10 of 12 UK leadership roles. 
• Earth Day (2025) – 62% of women are climate voters in the US (vs. 37% of men). “Greenness” is often linked with femininity. Women generally purchase eco-friendly products more frequently, consume less carbon, are more likely to recycle, minimize waste, and save more water and energy. In one study, women became more concerned climate impacts and more supportive of mitigation policies when asked to consider future generations; men experienced no such change.
• IRC (2023) – Climate change has been linked to a 39% surge in child marriage in Bangladesh. After disasters, 86% of girls face increased domestic workloads, affecting their studies.
• Hidden Connections – Documentary on climate change and child marriage in Bangladesh. 
• LSE (2025) – Women’s food and transport carbon footprint are 26% lower than men’s in France. 
• CEO Magazine (2023) – With 10 new female CEOs in the S&P 500 index, women finally outnumbered CEOs named John.
• Vegan Society (2025) – More women (3.60%) than men (1.89%) say they are vegan or have a plant-based diet.  
• Financial Alliance for Women – Non-performing loans from women are 53% lower than from men.
• One Earth (2025) – The Paris Agreement and its guiding principle of 'net zero emissions' was shaped by women leaders (the "lionesses") including Farhana Yamin, Christiana Figueres, and Tessa Tennant.
• Cara Daggett (2018) – Introduced “petro-masculinity” to describe the hypermasculine mode of support for fossil fuels in rising authoritarian movements.
• McKinsey (2023) - Top-quartile companies for gender diversity were 39% more likely to financially outperform. 

Thank you for listening! Please follow us on social media to join the conversation: 

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You can also now watch us on YouTube.

Music: “Just Because Some Bad Wind Blows” by Nick Nuttall, Reptiphon Records. Available at https://nicknuttallmusic.bandcamp.com/album/just-because-some-bad-wind-blows-3

Producer: Podshop Studios

Huge thanks to Siobhán Foster, a vital member of the team offering design advice, critical review and organisation that we depend upon.

Stay tuned for more insightful discussions on navigating the transition away from fossil fuels to a sustainable future.

Our lives are intertwined with energy. It comes in many forms and, while it can never be lost, it can be converted from one form to another to do useful work. The energy transition is the process of shifting energy production away from sources that release greenhouse gases and towards sources that emit little or none.

In this episode, James and Daisy explore all things energy. What exactly is energy? What does a good energy system look like? And how do fossil fuels compare with green energy?

SOME RECOMMENDATIONS: 

• Ember (2025) – The annual slide deck from Kingsmill Bond and the Ember Futures team unpacks how electrotech is rewriting the economics and geopolitics of energy. Electrotech is around three times more efficient than fossil fuels. Around 80% of the world’s population lives in fossil-fuel-importing countries, with more than 50 countries importing over half of their primary energy as fossil fuels. In contrast, 92% of countries have renewable energy potential more than ten times their current demand.
• Our World in Data – Data, visualizations, and writing relating to energy. This article explains primary, secondary, final and useful energy – the four stages of the energy chain – and why these distinctions matter.  
• BloombergNEF (2025) – Michael Liebreich makes the case for a pragmatic climate reset, showing what happens if clean energy outgrows energy demand by 3% per year for the next four decades. 

OTHER ADVOCATES AND RESOURCES:

• John Elkington (2025) – A blog on ‘How—And Where—To Channel Our Energy?’
• Cleaning Up (2025) – A visual showing how much energy Egypt can buy for $1m, comparing oil, LNG, solar, wind, and nuclear. 
• RMI (2024) – Today’s fossil energy system is incredibly inefficient: almost two-thirds of all primary energy is wasted during energy production, transportation, and use, before any useful work is done. That’s over $4.6 trillion per year, nearly 5% of global GDP and 40% of total energy spending, effectively lost to fossil fuel inefficiency. Around 45% of total shipping demand is for transporting fossil fuels, with roughly $42 billion per year spent on fossil fuels to ship other fossil fuels.
• Xlinks – A 2,500-mile subsea cable to bring renewable energy from Morocco to the UK. 
• Sulfurcell – A German company founded in 2001 to develop and produce thin film solar cells based on copper indium sulfide (CIS) technology. The company went into administration in 2012. 
• NESO – ‘Energy 101’ by the UK’s National Energy System Operator. 
• Our World in Data (2021) – Energy sources are often reported using different metrics. This article explains how primary energy is measured. A typical coal plant in the US has an efficiency of 33% – only one-third generates electricity, while the rest is lost as heat. Gas performs slightly better, at around 45% efficiency. In popular datasets, coal and gas are reported in primary energy terms (the fuel going into the power plant), while renewable electricity – such as solar and wind – is reported based on electricity output.
• Ember (2025) – China’s wind generation was 992 TWh in 2024, accounting for 40% of global wind generation.
• Ember (2026) – India is electrifying faster and using fewer fossil fuels per capita than China did when it was at a similar stage of economic development.
• Ember (2025) – Solar and wind outpaced the growth in global electricity demand in the first half of 2025, resulting in a very small decline in both coal and gas compared to the same period last year.
• BBC (2025) – The price of silver hit a record high ahead of an expected US Federal Reserve interest rate cut, driven in part by strong demand from the technology sector.

Thank you for listening! Please follow us on social media to join the conversation: 

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You can also now watch us on YouTube.

Music: “Just Because Some Bad Wind Blows” by Nick Nuttall, Reptiphon Records. Available at https://nicknuttallmusic.bandcamp.com/album/just-because-some-bad-wind-blows-3

Producer: Podshop Studios

Huge thanks to Siobhán Foster, a vital member of the team offering design advice, critical review and organisation that we depend upon.

Stay tuned for more insightful discussions on navigating the transition away from fossil fuels to a sustainable future.

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region sits at the heart of the world’s energy system, home to many of the top oil and gas producers. Yet it also one of the most climate-vulnerable regions, with huge renewable energy potential.

In this episode, James and Daisy discuss the region’s climate challenges. How is MENA impacted by climate change? Is the region serious about the energy transition? What were the key takeaways from Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week? 

SOME RECOMMENDATIONS: 

• Masdar – A fast-growing renewable energy company owned by three UAE energy companies (ADNOC, Mubadala Investment Company, and TAQA) with projects in 40+ countries across six continents with a combined capacity of more than 65GW. COP28 President Dr Sultan Al Jaber chairs Masdar while also leading ADNOC. Masdar is building the world’s largest solar-plus battery project, that will run 24 hours a day, displacing 5.7 million tons of CO2 annually – equivalent to planting 100 million trees and covering 90 square kilometres, roughly the size of Copenhagen.
• Zayed Sustainability Prize – The UAE's global award that recognises SMEs, nonprofits, and schools with impactful sustainable solutions. This year’s Energy winner was Switzerland’s BASE Foundation with its cooling-as-a-service solution. Ignite Energy Access, a UAE-based climate-tech company scaling sustainable infrastructure solutions across Africa won the Energy Innovation category at COP28.

OTHER ADVOCATES AND RESOURCES:

• Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) – One of the world’s largest sustainability gatherings, hosted by Masdar. 
• Our World in Data – A graph of oil production by region shows that roughly one third comes from the Middle East. 
• Ember (2025)– In 2023, 7% of the Middle East’s electricity was generated from clean sources, below the global average of 39%. Saudi Arabia aims for 50% renewable electricity by 2030.
• IEA (2025) – In 2024, MENA supplied over 30% of the world’s oil and nearly 20% of its natural gas. Between 2000 and 2024, electricity demand tripled – making the MENA region the third-largest contributor to global electricity demand growth after China and India. Average temperatures in MENA are rising at more than twice the global rate, and summer temperatures regularly exceed 40 °C.
• Financial Times (2025) – How plans for the utopian city of Neom have unravelled.  
• BloombergNEF (2025) – Michael Liebreich makes the case for a pragmatic climate reset.
• Cleaning Up (2025) – Liebreich in conversation with Lord Browne, former CEO of BP.
• Breakneck by Dan Wang (2025) – Shows how the cost of one US nuclear plant equals roughly 11 in China. 
• Cleaning Up (2025) – A visual showing how much energy Egypt can buy for $1m, comparing oil, LNG, solar, wind, and nuclear.

SOME FACTS:

• Investopedia: The MENA region includes Algeria, Bahrain, Djibouti, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Malta, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, Palestine, and Yemen.
• IEA – MENA holds five of the world’s top 10 oil producers (Saudi Arabia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Iran and Kuwait) and three of the top 20 gas producers. Nearly 95% of electricity generated in the Middle East comes from natural gas and oil – the highest share in the world. 
• World Bank (2025) – MENA holds more than half of the world’s oil reserves and 40% of gas reserves.
• World Bank (2022) – MENA’s GHG footprint is 8.7% of global emissions. MENA is the world’s most water scarce region with 60% of people living in high or extremely high water stressed areas. MENA receives 22-26% of all solar energy striking the earth and its solar potential per square kilometre is equivalent to energy produced by 1-2 million barrels of oil annually and could meet at least 50% of global electricity demand. 75% of MENA has average wind speeds that exceed the minimum threshold for utility-scale wind farms.
• Earth.Org (2025) – Saudi Aramco accounts for 4.38% of global CO2 emissions.  
• The Guardian (2025) – Saudi Arabia spent more on fossil fuel subsidies than it did on its national health budget in 2023.
• NY Times (2025) – Over the past year, EVs accounted for 76% of all passenger vehicles sold in Nepal.
• WRI (2025) – In 2024, EVs made up 92% of passenger vehicle sales in Norway. 

Thank you for listening! Please follow us on social media to join the conversation: 

LinkedIn | Instagram | TikTok

You can also now watch us on YouTube.

Music: “Just Because Some Bad Wind Blows” by Nick Nuttall, Reptiphon Records. Available at https://nicknuttallmusic.bandcamp.com/album/just-because-some-bad-wind-blows-3

Huge thanks to Siobhán Foster, a vital member of the team offering design advice, critical review and organisation that we depend upon.

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Demand for digital services has exploded — and with it, the rapid expansion of data centres providing the compute power behind everything from streaming and cloud storage to AI. But this growth could have serious climate consequences.

In this episode, James and Daisy explore the rise of data centres. What exactly are they? Why are they becoming so central to our lives? And how can we guide their future growth to align with our climate goals?

SOME RECOMMENDATIONS: 

• Cleaning Up (2025) – An on-location podcast episode where Michael Liebreich visits Sines, Portugal, where Start Campus is building a data centre, set to be Europe’s largest. 
• Carbon Brief (2025) – Five charts on data centre energy use and emissions. 
• Brookings (2025) – Analysis on the future of data centres. 

OTHER ADVOCATES AND RESOURCES:

• Green Mountain – SVG-Rennesøy is a Norwegian Tier III mountain hall data centre built inside a former high security NATO ammunition storage facility and cooled by fjord seawater.
• The Guardian (2025) – Google plans to put AI data centres into space, with the first trial equipment sent into orbit in early 2027. Solar panels powering these data centres could be up to eight times more productive than those on Earth. 
• Terrestrial Energy – A developer of Generation IV nuclear plants using proprietary Integral Molten Salt Reactor (IMSR) technology.
• NESO – The National Energy System Operator for Great Britain, responsible for electricity system planning amid rising demand.
• BBC (2023) – The waste heat from a washing-machine-sized data centre is being used to heat a public swimming pool in Devon.
• Bloomberg (2025) – Finland and Sweden are pairing data centres with district heating systems.
• WEF (2020) – Microsoft’s ‘Project Natick’ tested a shipping-container-sized underwater data centre off the coast of Orkney, Scotland, finding it was eight times more reliable than land-based equivalents.
• Kraken – An all-in-one, smart operating system automating much of the energy supply chain, supporting efficiency and flexibility as energy systems decarbonise.

SOME FACTS:

• MIT News (2025) – The first data centre was built at the University of Pennsylvania in 1945 to support the ENIAC, the first general-purpose digital computer. 
• IEA (2023) – Since 2010, the number of internet users worldwide has more than doubled, while internet traffic has increased 25-fold. Data centres and data transmission networks each account for 1-1.5% of global electricity use and around 1% of energy-related GHG emissions. 
• UK Parliament (2025) – Data centres consume around 2.5% of the UK’s electricity, with demand expected to quadruple by 2030.
• GOV.UK (2024) – Data centres are designated as Critical National Infrastructure, alongside energy and water systems.
• BBC (2025) – There are an estimated 500 data centres operating across the UK.
• McKinsey (2025) – By 2030, $6.7 trillion in global investment in data centres will be needed to meet demand for compute power, of which 70% will come from AI workloads. Demand for AI-ready data centre capacity is expected to grow by 33% per year between 2023 and 2030. By 2030, up to 65% of AI workloads in Europe and the United States will be hosted on hyperscalers’ infrastructure.
• Ofgem (2006) – One megawatt-hour (MWh) equals 1,000 kilowatt hours – roughly enough to power around 2,000 homes for one hour.
• MIT Sloan School of Management (2025) – When the full cost of delivering AI to customers is included, data centres could account for up to 21% of global energy demand by 2030.
• WEF – Power use in data centres is typically split between IT equipment (40–50%), cooling systems (30–40%), and auxiliary systems such as lighting and security (10–30%).
• NY Times (2025) – Google, Microsoft, Amazon and Meta spent more than $360 billion in capital expenditures over 12 months.
• CSO (2023) – Data centres already account for over 20% of Ireland’s total electricity consumption.
• IEA (2024) – Nearly one-third of Ireland’s electricity demand is expected to come from data centres by 2026.
• WEF (2025) – Climate hazards such as extreme heat and drought could add $81 billion per year in costs to data centres globally by 2035.
• The Guardian (2025) – More than 230 environmental groups have called for a national moratorium on new US data centres, citing rising electricity bills and worsening climate impacts.
• CNBC (2025) – Google, Oracle and Microsoft estimate AI hardware lifespans of up to six years, but sceptics such as short seller Michael Burry argue that they may be significantly shorter. 

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The COP – or ‘Conference of the Parties’ – is the supreme decision-making body of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). In November 2025, COP30 took place in Belém, Brazil – the thirtieth of these annual meetings and a milestone marking ten years since the Paris Agreement. As with many COPs, reactions to the final outcomes were mixed.

In this episode, James and Daisy reflect on COP30 and look ahead to what comes next. What were the most significant outcomes? What is the plan for COP31? How might the COP process itself be reformed? 

SOME RECOMMENDATIONS: 

• Mutirão Decision – The central outcome text from COP30. “Mutirão,” a term from the Tupi-Guarani language meaning “collective efforts,” was adopted by the COP30 Presidency as the guiding theme to inspire global climate action.
• Inside COP – A special edition of the Outrage + Optimism podcast, created in partnership with the COP30 Presidency, offering exclusive behind-the-scenes insights from the negotiations.

OTHER ADVOCATES AND RESOURCES:

• Carbon Brief (2025) – A clear summary of COP30 outcomes, including the agreement to triple adaptation finance by 2035 and the establishment of a just transition mechanism. Although more than 80 countries supported a roadmap to phase out fossil fuels, the final text did not include such a reference.
• NDC Tracker – A live tracker showing which countries have submitted updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
• WRI (2025) – An analysis of COP30’s achievements and shortfalls. By the close of the conference, 119 countries — representing 74% of global emissions — had submitted new NDCs. While these reflect progress, together they deliver less than 15% of the emissions reductions needed by 2035 to keep warming to 1.5°C.
• UNEP (2025) – Current projections estimate global warming of 2.3–2.5°C if all NDCs are fully implemented, and around 2.8°C based on current policies.  Since the adoption of the Paris Agreement ten years ago, temperature predictions have fallen from 3-3.5°C. 
• The Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative – In response to the absence of fossil fuel language in the COP30 text, Colombia and the Netherlands announced they will co-host the First International Conference on the Just Transition Away from Fossil Fuels, to be held 28–29 April 2026 in Santa Marta, Colombia — a key coal-exporting port city.
• UNFCCC (2025) – Türkiye will host COP31, including the World Leaders’ Summit. The Pre-COP will be hosted in a Pacific Island country, supported by Australia. A representative of Türkiye will serve as COP31 President-Designate from the close of COP30, with an Australian representative appointed as President of Negotiations.
• IISD (2015) – Background on the Major Economies Forum on Energy and Climate (MEF), launched in 2009 to foster candid dialogue among major emitters and build political momentum for climate action.

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Music: “Just Because Some Bad Wind Blows” by Nick Nuttall, Reptiphon Records. Available at https://nicknuttallmusic.bandcamp.com/album/just-because-some-bad-wind-blows-3

Producer: Podshop Studios

Huge thanks to Siobhán Foster, a vital member of the team offering design advice, critical review and organisation that we depend upon.

Stay tuned for more insightful discussions on navigating the transition away from fossil fuels to a sustainable future.