Podcasts

The growth of electric vehicles (EV’s) on Texas roads and highways is accelerating. It is only a matter of time when electric vehicles become a majority, and the fossil fuel guzzling, air polluting combustion engine cars and trucks become an anachronism. Our guest on Shades of Green is Tom “Smitty” Smith, Executive Director for the Texas Electric Transportation Resources Alliance (TxETRA), a non-profit collaborative with the goal of having “10 million electric vehicles and 75 % of all trips to be electric propulsion by 2035” in Texas. Smitty discusses the latest advances in electric vehicles, activities of TxETRA, and policy developments to help promote the EV industry.

Basic necessities such as water and electricity are critical, particularly during the time of a pandemic such as COVID-19. We spoke with local advocates that are ensuring that utilities in Texas are not cutting off these necessities as people have difficulty making payments. Our guests for the remote broadcast are:

Kaiba White, Climate Policy and Outreach Specialist, Public Citizen’s Texas office

Keegan Warren-Clem, Managing Attorney with medical legal partnership Texas Legal Services Center

Chrissy Mann, Austin Sierra Club, Senior Campaign Representative for Beyond Coal

The Texas Campaign for the Environment (TCE) has a mission to empower all Texans to fight pollution through sustained grassroots organizing campaigns that shift corporate and government policy. With offices in Austin, Houston, and Dallas-Forth Worth, they envision a Texas free from pollution. Their main form of communication and organizing is through door-to-door canvassing and grassroots conversations. The COVID-19 crisis has not slowed their canvassing, they have adapted by using online communication and other outreach activities. Our guest is Jeffrey Jacoby, the Deputy Director of the Texas Campaign for the Environment. He gives us an update on the latest actions of TCE and policy issues facing Texans.

The shutdown and shelter-at-home orders throughout the United States have affected all industries. Wind power continues to grow and expand as it become more of a mainstream supply of electrical power. Our guest on Shades of Green is Susan Sloan, the Vice President of State Affair at the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). Susan gives us an update on the wind power industry in the United States and how it is adapting. We discussed the incredible growth of wind over the last 10 years, new initiatives and new government policies that are affecting the immediate and long-term future of wind power.

The shutdown and shelter-at-home orders throughout the United States have affected all industries. The solar power industry in Texas is still strong and adapting to the new ways of doing business. Our guest on Shades of Green is Charlie Hemmeline the Executive Director of the Texas Solar Power Association. He gives us an update on the solar industry in Texas, both utility and residential-scale and how it is adapting. We discuss new initiatives and policies that are affecting the immediate and long-term future of solar power.

The Advanced Power Alliance is the industry trade association created to promote the development of wind, solar, and storage: resources that are clean, reliable, affordable, and infinite sources of power. The Alliance is the advanced power industry’s voice within the fourteen states including Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming.

The region is rich in wind and solar energy, along with vast quantities of natural gas. We have a recent and rich history of robust energy development and we are positioned well to lead in energy production long into the future.

Our guest on KOOP Radio Shades of Green is Jeff Clark, the President of The Advanced Power Alliance. He shares his insights about clean energy resources and how they are contributing to our energy demand for now, and into the future.

We discuss the intersection of messaging around the Green New Deal, Earth Day Austin, and local Austin Sunrise Movement initiatives. Now more than ever we see the urgent state of affairs as our US government dismantles environmental protections.

Our guests on our remote broadcast are:

Janis Bookout, Executive Director of Earth Day Austin, and Vice Chair Board of Directors of Texas Electric Transportation Resource Alliance (TxETRA).

Katie Horstman, local organizer for Sunrise Movement in Austin

Christopher Cook, author and award-winning journalist, and green advocate. His writing appears in Harper’s, The Atlantic, the Los Angeles Times, Mother Jones, The Economist, The Christian Science Monitor, and elsewhere at www.christopherdcook.com

The City of Austin releases its “Austin Energy Resource, Generation and Climate Protection Plan” for providing affordable, clean energy over the next 15 years. The plan calls for 86% of Austin Energy’s electricity generation to be carbon-free by year-end 2025, 93% will be carbon-free by year-end 2030, and all generation resources will be carbon-free by 2035. Austin Energy commits to advance these goals more rapidly, if feasible given technological developments, affordability, and risks to Austin Energy customers.

We discuss the aggressive and leading edge utility Plan with our guests:

Erika Bierschbach, Vice President, Energy Market Operations and Resource Planning at Austin Energy.

Matt Weldon, Austin Electric Utility Commissioner, and Board of Solar Austin.

Al Braden, Member of the Resource Planning Working Group, environmental activist and photographer.

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Solar Austin, a local non-profit has teamed up with Huston-Tillotson University to provide training and mentoring for minorities interested in entering the solar energy field. Despite the issues associated with COVID-19 the solar mentoring program is forging forward. Our guests for our remote broad cast on KOOP were the following:

Kaiba White, President of Solar Austin non-profit in Austin

Beryl Dann, Equitable Clean Energy Jobs Program Manager at Solar AustinProject

Karen Magid, Ph.D. Director of Sustainability and STEM for Huston-Tillotson University in Austin.

Shades of Green host Amy Stansbury talks with community organizer Angelica Erazo about the importance of considering communities of color during this dire time of Coronavirus. Angelica stressed the importance of keeping people informed and connected. Rather than relying on possible disinformation from the government or corporate America, Angelica and other organizers have developed a community run website: coronavirusaustin.org