Support us on Patreon... Tennant, Luke and Frankie are calling all Summerupperers to come join the expanded LMSU universe and support our Patreon! Sign up today for access to coveted BoCo like extra subscriber-only episodes, including the recently released Dungeons and Dragons play-though episode. What’s not to love here? Head on over to https://www.patreon.com/LetMeSumUp.

The 2024 Wonkies! 

We are back, one last time in 2024, with our THIRD ANNUAL BUMPER HOLIDAY SPECTACULAR SPECTACULAR! That’s right Summerupperers, ‘tis the season for the Highly Anticipated and Much Sought After awarding of the third annual Wonkies! And we have ourselves a Godzilla vs Kong vs Mothra situation on our hands, as DITRDCA faces off against CCA and DCCEEW for the best climate and energy paper we talked about on the podcast in 2024. 

It was a lengthy and somewhat contentious debate this year (in which actual real world impact on emissions reduction was mystifyingly discounted), but ultimately consensus was achieved and DCCEEW and Carbon Leakage Review lead Frank Jotzo triumphed with the Carbon Leakage Review Second Consultation Paper! If you are wondering why this paper was such a corker you can hear our thoughts on it, at length, back on Episode 61.

Congratulations must also go to the runner-ups in this hard fought category, the CCA’s 2024 Issues Paper, Targets, Pathways and Progress (Episode 46) and  Cleaner, Cheaper to Run Cars: The Australian New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (Episode 42). And if you want to truly appreciate the profound import of that last paper for breaking the karmic policy cycle, why not check out Developments in Australian fuel quality and vehicle emissions standards: a chronology from the Parliamentary Library!

Princess Mononoke!!

And while the Wonkies are great, what LMSU Holiday Special would be complete without discussion of a movie? And this year we take on an absolute banger, Princess Mononoke, a historical fantasy set in feudal Japan directed by acclaimed filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki. 

This film has everything! Stunning anime! Giant animal gods! Wolf princesses! Feminist industrialists! Long suffering proto-centrists that wish everyone would just stop fighting and talk it out! TL;DR we vibe with this movie. So great.

You can watch it on Netflix in Australia. Also have a read of this interview with Miyazaki himself, which we reference several times in our chat.

One more things – annual pop culture edition!!!

Tennant’s One More Thing is a highly inaccessible film: Orson Welles classic F for Fake. While there isn’t a good Australian link, if you are inspired by Tennant’s endorsement and wish to go on this particular spirit quest you could start here!

Frankie likes recommending podcasts and quarterly essays, and she doesn’t disappoint this year, giving her tick to design podcast 99% Invisible and a provisional tick (not having read it yet) to George Megalogenis’ latest Quarterly Essay, Minority Report, The New Shape of Australian Politics. Which Luke reminded us is also available as an audiobook read by the author himself, if that is your thang!

Luke’s One More Thing is a couple of video game recommendations: acclaimed indie platformer Celeste, with a side helping of first party family fun in Super Mario Wonder!

Special bonus post show song!!!!

And we close out the year with one final treat; the latest offering from the NEMchat Singers, Everybody Wants to Change the Rules, a reflection on the deep and abiding dissatisfaction with our electricity market regime, set to the tune of ‘Everybody Wants to Rule the World' by 80s pop icons Tears for Fears. 

Thanks to NEMchat Singers Dean Lombard, Mark Henley and the mysterious ‘Gen Taylor’ for letting us share this with you. And if you enjoyed the song be sure to check out their other 2024 offering, Stake it on the Atom!

Catch you next year!!!!!

And that’s all from us in 2024 Summerupperers! We are taking a break in January but will be back with ever more reports in February 2025. In the meantime, happy holidays to you all, and while you rest up, send your hot tips, suggestions for papers and climate-themed pop culture to [email protected], and catch us over on Bluesky at @lukemenzel.bsky.social @tennantreed.bsky.social and @frankiemuskovic.bsky.social

Support us on Patreon... Tennant, Luke and Frankie are calling all Summerupperers to come join the expanded LMSU universe and support our Patreon! Sign up today for access to coveted BoCo like bonus subscriber-only episodes, soon to include a game of Dungeons & Dragons recorded in Baku after a chat about the US election. What’s not to love here? Head on over to https://www.patreon.com/LetMeSumUp.

—

It’s a cornucopia of climate content as your intrepid hosts barely know where to start feasting as the festive season descends upon the pod. Conscious climate consumers that we are, we can’t help but indulge in a little pre-xmas pud of (yet another) NEM review. There are terms of reference, and wouldn’t you know, we have thoughts about them. The TL;DR of *this* NEM review is that there are a bunch of good eggs, led by Tim Nelson, in search of the successor to the Capacity Investment Scheme. And once again, heavy sighs from governance wonks and demand side proponents abound as these do not seem to be a focus. 🙄 If only someone had done some thinking about reform of our energy system governance to enable more demand side action…

…Aaaand... 

...here’s one the Australian Council of Social Service, Australian Industry Group, Energy Efficiency Council and the Property Council prepared earlier! Fresh out of the oven, their report, Demanding Better, has a few ideas... 

...aaand mischief managed.

Our main paper

On The Third Climate Christmas, the Climate Change Authority gave to us: their 2024 Annual Progress Report! And is Australia on the CCA’s naughty or nice list? There’s no space for such boring binaries on this podcast of note, Frankie will have you know. Australia is somewhere near the middle of the bus we reckon*. Three chunky sections and ten substantial recommendations later and you’d think your intrepid hosts would have their fill of Climatemas Content for now, but alas, all Luke wants for Christmas is a 2035 target 🥲

One more things

Tennant’s One More Thing is: the impact of gas prices on bricks! Just how badly is housing affordability worsened thanks to rising gas prices’ impact on a double brick house? Spoiler alert. Not much. And why was Tennant asked about this anyway?

Frankie’s One More Thing is: the just launched Greater Sydney Heat Smart City Plan! This plan has its origins in a long running collab between the Western Sydney Region of Councils and Resilient Sydney, with actions and a coordinated program of work to manage city wide heat risk reduction.

Luke’s One More Thing is: a callout to all Summerupperers to vote for the climate movie your intrepid hosts should watch and sum up for our 2024 Holiday Special! Cast your vote here to determine our fate! And please, no Soylent Green devotees need respond**.

And that’s all from us Summerupperers! Support our Patreon at patreon.com/LetMeSumUp, send your hot tips and suggestions for papers to us at [email protected] and check out our back catalogue at letmesumup.net.

* Please write in if you know what this means – Ed.

** Tennant disagrees! Soylent stalwarts unite! – T

Support us on Patreon... Tennant, Luke and Frankie are calling all Summerupperers to come join the expanded LMSU universe and support our Patreon! Sign up today for access to coveted BoCo like bonus subscriber-only episodes, including our feelpinions about the recent US election! Head on over to https://www.patreon.com/LetMeSumUp.

–

We left you all on a cliffhanger last episode, so for those of you paying absolutely no attention to news reports we’re here to resolve all plotlines! How much did the developed world commit in climate finance? Did the UAE dialogue generate crackling conversation, or trail off awkwardly? And how many thrilling breakthroughs can one Article 6 have in a single COP? We reveal all! 

To note:

• If you want to dig into any of the texts referenced in this episode we recommend Carbon Brief’s excellent negotiating texts tracker. 
• If you would like to supplement the sleep deprived, discursive ramblings of this podcast with some actual reporting, their COP29 outcomes summary is second to none.
• But if you are all like ‘read? Pfft. Give me more pods!’ you can check out Luke’s interview at COP with Assistant Minister for Climate and Energy Josh Wilson over on First Fuel.

And that’s all from us Summerupperers! Support our Patreon at patreon.com/LetMeSumUp, send your hot tips and suggestions for papers to us at [email protected] and check out our back catalogue at letmesumup.net.

Support us on Patreon... Tennant, Luke and Frankie are calling all Summerupperers to come join the expanded LMSU universe and support our Patreon! Sign up today for access to coveted BoCo like bonus subscriber-only episodes, including our feelpinions about the recent US election!!. Head on over to https://www.patreon.com/LetMeSumUp.

Our main topic

It is Back to Baku (sort of) as Frankie, Luke and Tennant report from the ground at COP29  in Azerbaijan, and call in reinforcements (someone has to be on hand to remind us of the storied history of cover texts) in the form of climate journalism luminary Dr Simon Evans from Carbon Brief!

And there is much to discuss! How is Trump's election affecting the mood on the ground? What about those early NDCs from UK and Brazil? What is up with all those Article 6 shenanigans on Day 1? And are we any closer to closing a deal on finance at the, you know, Finance COP?

It's a lot, frankly. So if you want even more extemporaneous opinions – especially on the rich program of side events – don't forget to check out our Youtube channel for daily updates from the ground.

One more things

Tennant's one more thing is, shockingly, CBAM related, specifically the way trade issues are being raised – and shut down – at the COP.  Who saw that coming?

Frankie's is One more thing is the themes emerging in UNFCCC side events that suggest an increasing focus on what we do if we overshoot 1.5 degrees of warming.

Simon's one more thing is a reflection on the through the looking glass experience of attending a climate conference in a petrostate, brought into sharp relief by an incongruous art installation on the Baku foreshore.

Luke's one more thing is a plug for the Trump election reaction episode that our Patreon subscribers have just had drop into their feeds. If you are here for LMSU feelpinions on the Trump win, head on over to Patreon.com/letmesumup

And that’s all from us Summerupperers! Support our Patreon at patreon.com/LetMeSumUp, send your hot tips and suggestions for papers to us at [email protected] and check out our back catalogue at letmesumup.net.

Support us on Patreon... Tennant, Luke and Frankie are calling all Summerupperers to come join the expanded LMSU universe and support our Patreon! Sign up today for access to coveted BoCo like bonus subscriber-only episodes and - dare we say it - the prospect of elusive LMSU t-shirt designs?! Only one way to find out. Head on over to https://www.patreon.com/LetMeSumUp.

Our Main Paper

We interrupt regular programming to bring you an extra, rapid reaction episode to a very special development. And sorry folks, it’s not the US election result, that happened *after* we recorded this one. 

Mariah Carey has been defrosted and Christmas has come early for one member of the LMSU team in particular! That’s right folks, the threat of Tennant performing CBAM The Musical outside DCCEEW offices has resulted in the release of the government’s second consultation paper as part of its Carbon Leakage Review. A thoughtful and detailed analysis lays out the key risks of carbon leakage across different commodities in terms of trade and investment, and suggests that YES INDEED, there is a role for a Border Carbon Adjustment Mechanism. That’s right, it’s a BoCA and most definitely not a CBAM, but whatever it is, it won’t hurt a bit?!

And that’s all from us Summerupperers! We're off to Baku to take the temperature and Trump redux climate politics, but until then  support our Patreon at patreon.com/LetMeSumUp, send your hot tips and suggestions for papers to us at [email protected] and check out our back catalogue at letmesumup.net.

Support us on Patreon... Tennant, Luke and Frankie are calling all Summerupperers to come join the expanded LMSU universe and support our Patreon! Sign up today for access to coveted BoCo like bonus subscriber-only episodes and - dare we say it - the prospect of elusive LMSU t-shirt designs?! Only one way to find out. Head on over to https://www.patreon.com/LetMeSumUp.

—

After Frankie brazenly reclaims a corner of the pod for the infamous “Shirtfronting with Frankie” (become a Super Summerupperer for a first look at t-shirt designs!) your intrepid hosts dive into a pre-COP-primer as the next Conference of Parties is almost upon us! And never fear, the LMSU team will be on the ground in Baku, Azerbaijan, bringing you the latest on the negotiations. What’s on the menu for COP29? Finance, dollars and more finance! Negotiations on a New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) on climate finance are centre stage, co-chaired by Australia’s own Minister Bowen. And as pressure is due to ramp up on the next round of Nationally Determined Contributions, let’s not forget the spectre of the US election and its impact on the mood on the ground…

Bonus: check out our wrap of last year’s COP28 as your amuse bouche for Baku!

Our main paper

Having failed to come up with a compelling turn of phrase for NCQG (we’ll work on it) we dive into the OECD’s Climate Finance Provided and Mobilised by Developed Countries in 2013-22, a summary on how we’ve faired against the existing $100 billion a year goal. So, have we made it? OECD says yes, in 2022. LMSU says, asterisk! Conditions apply.

Bonus nerdery: a draft framework for negotiations on the NCQG, including how they might be defining developed vs developing countries. 

One more things

Tennant’s One More Thing is: listener feedback from Deeper Decarb on our National Hydrogen Strategy episode who said we had neglected the possibility of electrolysis leading to higher emissions without focusing on where projects would be sourcing energy. T’s response? The Govt reckons she’ll be apples! Subsidies and the need for low cost energy to be competitive means. Also check out DD’s substack!

Frankie’s One More Thing is: the recent and unexpected politicisation of, of all things, the National Construction Code! That’s right, there’s a stoush brewing over whether there should be a 10-year pause to further changes to the NCC, which, in this intrepid host’s view, would be BONKERS in the critical decade for climate action. 

Luke’s One More Thing is: a tribute to the LMSU ‘Super Summerupperers’ trivia team who managed a podium finish, coming in third at Currently Speaking’s trivia night in Melbourne. Special thanks to listeners Dylan, Dean and Ben for joining us! If only we’d listened to you at some critical moments. But we won't flog that dead horse!

And that’s all from us Summerupperers! Support our Patreon at patreon.com/LetMeSumUp, send your hot tips and suggestions for papers to us at [email protected] and check out our back catalogue at letmesumup.net.

Support us on Patreon... Tennant, Luke and Frankie are calling all Summerupperers to come join the expanded LMSU universe and support our Patreon! Sign up today for access to coveted BoCo like bonus subscriber-only episodes and tasty extras like our episode notes, custom memes and climate reworks of classic songs - it’s a vibe. Head on over to https://www.patreon.com/LetMeSumUp.

—

This week your intrepid hosts pop the frunk to take a look at just what is going on with trucks! Thanks to Bloomberg New Energy Finance, the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management and the Smart Freight Centre, we charged up on the latest with this zippy investor guide to zero emissions commercial vehicles that declares the time is NOW because progress is nascent in this part of the transport puzzle. In what looks to be another victory for electrification, battery electric vehicles are on the sweet steep learning curve and currently wiping the floor with hydrogen fuel cell trucks at 90% of the global market this year.

Our main paper

In yet another worrying sign we just can’t stop the GASbagging, we’re back for more to find out just How much gas does the future grid need? Thanks to Jay Gordon at the Institute for Energy Economic and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), we get a corrective on some of the spin from the gas industry who claim the 2024 ISP confirmed “ gas-powered generation will play a greater role in the National Electricity Market (NEM) to 2050” (!) Our hot take? More like: gas peakers = the sum of a remainder of an unbalanced equation inherent to the programming of the ISP matrix.

Bonus nerdery discussed: 

• Could this major German green steel project be on the ropes? Possibly!
• Is every Matrix movie other than the original terrible? Yes!

One more things

Tennant’s One More Thing is: the worrying continuation of wild conspiracy theories - adopted by US Republicans - linked to geoengineering that now claim that the devastating Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton was being engineered by… the government!? Yikes.

Frankie’s One More Thing is: the quiet release of the Australian Government’s ‘Achieving 30 by 30 on land’ - the national roadmap for protecting and conserving 30% of Australia’s land by 2030 - the week *after* hosting a Global Nature Summit. We’ll let you Summerupperers read between the lines on that one! 

Luke’s One More Thing is: to announce the lucky winners of tickets to join us at Currently Speaking's trivia night coming up in Melbourne on Wednesday, 23 October! Welcoming Super Summerupperers Dylan, Dean and Ben to Team LMSU - It’s ON folks!

And that’s all from us Summerupperers! Support our Patreon at patreon.com/LetMeSumUp, send your hot tips and suggestions for papers to us at [email protected] and check out our back catalogue at letmesumup.net

.

Support us on Patreon... Tennant, Luke and Frankie are calling all Summerupperers to come join the expanded LMSU universe and support our Patreon! Sign up today for access to coveted BoCo like our recent bonus episodes on nuclear (could it work?) Plus tasty extras like our episode notes, custom memes and climate themed reworks of classic songs - it’s a vibe. Head on over to https://www.patreon.com/LetMeSumUp.

—

This week your intrepid hosts are joined by LMSU co-host-at-large - aka the sensible lady in paragraph five - none other than Grattan climate maven Alison Reeve!

After hanging out for the much anticipated speech by Peter Dutton on the Opposition’s nuclear policy, at an event titled “Nuclear: could it work?” your intrepid hosts can report *shrug emojis* with side of *skeptical brow emojis* because there was NO new information in that speech. NADA. That did not stop the enterprising folks at IEEFA, who penned this analysis suggesting nuclear would add big $$ to all our energy bills and have no hope of making returns, ever. Our humble take? Pay big for it we will (T’s got some dodgy numbers!), but maybe through taxes rather than our energy bills. Tomayto, tomahto. Bless the folks at IEEFA for  creating the policy in order to model it!

Our main paper
It’s all engines go as the LMSU pit crew review the updated National Hydrogen Strategy, But before we get too H2 Fast H2 Furious, we jump in the DeLorean with Alison as she recounts the backstory on the original 2019 Hydrogen Strategy. So how does the 2024 model compare? Less hype, no tripe, some pipe! Clear-eyed and bullish about the role of green hydrogen in hard to abate sectors and key export opportunities, this hydrogen strategy is a shift to getting hy on our own supply!

Bonus: our third episode ever covering IRENA’s report on hydrogen carriers is the fine wine to accompany this main course.

One more things

Tennant’s One More Thing is: the passage of legislation in Tennessee to ban solar geoengineering - by Republicans, because, chemtrails! 

Alison’s One More Thing is: the end of coal power in the UK! With the closing of the last coal power station at Ratcliffe-on-Soar, it’s a symbolic shift as the country that first introduced coal-fired power in the industrial revolution continues its decarbonisation journey..

Frankie’s One More Thing is: the Australian Government hosting a Global Nature Positive Summit on Gadigal country in Sydney on 8-10 October against the backdrop of not much progress on nature positive reforms!

Luke’s One More Thing is: to remind you there are spare tickets up for grabs for Super Summerupperers to come join us at Currently Speaking's trivia night in Melbourne on Wednesday, 23 October! We have three spare tickets for the LMSU trivia team, and maybe they have your name on them! Just head on over to https://www.patreon.com/LetMeSumUp, make sure you are a paying subscriber, and answer this question: in 25 words or less, tell us what novel strategy Tennant should employ to get the Carbon Leakage Review second report released. The three most creative, least illegal answers get a ticket!

And that’s all from us Summerupperers! Support our Patreon at patreon.com/LetMeSumUp, send your hot tips and suggestions for papers to us at [email protected] and check out our back catalogue at letmesumup.net.

Come join us at Currently Speaking's trivia night!  Our friends at the Currently Speaking newsletter are putting on a trivia night in Melbourne on Wednesday, 23 October (on the evening of the first day of the All Energy Australia exhibition and conference). So you should get onto that, obviously. But if you are a Super Summerupperer (or ready to sign up) we have three spare tickets for the LMSU trivia team, and maybe they have your name on them! Just head on over to https://www.patreon.com/LetMeSumUp, make sure you are a paying subscriber, and answer this question: in 25 words or less, tell us what novel strategy Tennant should employ to get the Carbon Leakage Review second report released. The three most creative, least illegal answers get a ticket!

—

Luke and Frankie try to distract Tennant from his increasing desperation and dismay at the lack of CBAM content on the local menu, but happily your intrepid hosts have pathways-a-plenty to snack on with the Climate Change Authority publishing their final Sector Pathways Review! Feeding into the government’s work on the six sectoral decarbonisation plans, there is bottom-up and economy-wide modelling to consume. The TL;DR? A decent serve of residual emissions to net off, and engineered removals? We’ll need a fewwwwww!

And if you’re after more of a main course on CCA sector pathways, we recommend this fresh episode of First Fuel with Brad Archer: *chef’s kiss*

Our main paper

This week the LMSU crew sample some fine dining that Gill Armstrong, Joshua Danahay and Mia Dewar at Climateworks Centre have served up: a delightful degustation of home energy upgrades in their latest report, Enabling Australia’s home renovation wave. With three upgrade options across eight jurisdictions and sixty nine climate zones, your intrepid hosts had more than their fill of insulation packed options to improve Australia’s crappy old housing stock! A special hat tip to the team for their infographic game – it remains strong – and the interactive charts on the Climateworks website are especially worthy of your attention!

One more things

Tennant’s One More Thing is: the new and improved National Hydrogen Strategy v2. Should National Hydrogen Strategy v1 impresario Alison Reeve come back on the podcast and critique v2? Well should she? You, chicken, Reeve? PLUS a shout out and congratulations to friends of the pod, Erwin Jackson and Georgina Wood on their recent nuptials! 

Frankie’s One More Thing is: a shout out for the just launched campaign “Renew Australia For All” which has some sharp asks for upgrades to Australian homes AND pod rec for The Rest Is Politics US with Katty Kay and Anthony Scaramucci.

Luke’s One More Thing is: NSW has a new Consumer Energy Strategy! And residential mandatory disclosure is a thing! For realsies this time!

And that’s all from us Summerupperers! Support our Patreon at patreon.com/LetMeSumUp, send your hot tips and suggestions for papers to us at [email protected] and check out our back catalogue at letmesumup.net.

Support us on Patreon... Tennant, Luke and Frankie are calling all Summerupperers to come join the expanded LMSU universe and support our Patreon! Sign up today for access to coveted BoCo like our recent bonus episodes on US election shenanigans and closer to home, the passing of legislation for the Net Zero Economy Agency and Climate-related Financial Disclosures. You will also find things you didn’t know you wanted (weekly photos of Frankie’s uber cute doggo, Tennant’s cats, cyber punk cosplay outfits and a general #GoodTime). Don’t be shy! Head on over to https://www.patreon.com/LetMeSumUp.

—

Your intrepid hosts open with some ill considered commitments on BoCo that will(?) be made available on the Patreon (who doesn’t love a cyberpunk-doggo mash up), barely mention the actual bonus episode we released last week (see above) before wading into the inviting waters of AEMO’s latest Electricity Statement of Opportunities. So what does 2024 ESOO have to say for itself? Everything is now terrific, reliability wise! OR IS IT??!! 

This year’s ESOO leads with the good news picture but *warning* we still need to read carefully and while some big projects have been approved (oh hi HumeLink!), we should be feeling the urgency of Getting Stuff Done. And that stuff MUST include energy performance retrofits of millions of Australian homes! Shout out Climateworks on their latest report, Enabling Australia’s home renovation wave, which has some great suggestions on that front.

Our main paper

Your intrepid hosts break down being down on emissions breaks with the hot new Science paper causing all the commotion in climate circles. Climate policies that achieved major emission reductions: Global evidence from two decades from Annika Stechemesser and collaborators, mainly from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, has more hot takes and fake takes than you can poke a stick at!  Listen on to hear ours - flaws we did find, it’s not all bad though - but also don’t just trust us! We reference some fantastic analysis of the paper from Emil Dimanchev which is well worth your time. Also, if Euler diagrams are your jam then this paper is for YOU.

One more things

Tennant’s One More Thing is: the decision by Korea’s highest court to require the legislature to put forward 2030-50 interim climate targets PLUS a Brian Deese article in Foreign Affairs calling for a clean energy Marshall Plan.

Frankie’s One More Thing is: a note on some worrying signs of breaks to commitments towards net zero housing and future changes to the National Construction Code after the SA government pressed pause on further changes for the next ten years.

Luke’s One More Thing is: This article from Currently Speaking (and the associated impromptu reading list). 

And that’s all from us Summerupperers! Support our Patreon at patreon.com/LetMeSumUp, send your hot tips and suggestions for papers to us at [email protected] and check out our back catalogue at letmesumup.net.