The Net Zero Life

What does it take to get to net-zero and will we accomplish it fast enough? In the last episode of season two, Nathan speaks with Nat Bullard, Chief Content Officer at Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) on how he and the rest of the BNEF team are bringing the world closer to net-zero emissions by sharing information and insights. 

BloombergNEF is a research group within Bloomberg LP. Their analytical services assess the tools, business models, and pathways for achieving a deep decarbonization of the global economy by mid-century. The group covers power, transportation, food and agriculture, the built environment, and the enabling technologies linking them together. C-suite executives, board members, and consultants are a small sample of the rapidly growing community of people who benefit from BloombergNEFs insights.

Nat is a leading thinker in the global transition to a net-zero society. I use his work to help research this show. He is also one of the top thinkers around net zero topics like the  energy transition, electrification of transport, climate technology, and climate finance. 

During the interview, Nat and I discuss art as a lens to understand climate and innovation, his journey into the world of climate, what he reads to inform his opinions and his process for turning ideas into insights. We discuss the importance of accuracy in Bloomberg’s predictions and if the world decarbonizing fast enough to reach net-zero emissions in time to prevent the worst impacts of climate change.

You can learn more about BloombergNEF on their website, hhttps://about.bnef.com/

You can follow Nat on Twitter @NatBullard and/or subscribe to his weekly column in Bloomberg Green, Sparklines.

Season two is powered by Climate People. If you are a software developer or recruiter looking to get into climate tech, Climate People is the best place to start. You can reach Brendan Anderson, CEO of Climate People, at [email protected].

Keep up with the show by following The Net Zero Life on Twitter and Instagram (@thenetzerolife). 

You can also get in touch at www.thenetzerolife.com or via email at [email protected].

There are many reasons we as humans should work to achieve net-zero emissions. One of those reasons is to improve the lives of individuals who occupy planet earth. Today on the show we learn from an expert who has a different way to move the world closer to net-zero, one that focuses on environmental justice and the role of being a global citizen.

Is it fair that less developed countries who have emitted negligible emissions should be the most impacted by climate change including rising sea levels, more frequent and forceful tropical storms, and then not be given funding to adopt to the new climate they have to face? 

To answer these question and more I’m speaking with Andrea Johnson, Executive Director of Green Empowerment, Green Empowerment’s  mission is to bring renewable energy and clean water to rural communities globally. The heart of Green Empowerment’s model is authentic partnership. They collaborate with in-country organizations that know the local language and culture and have a long-term commitment to the region. Following their partners lead, they design systems that are built and maintained by the communities themselves and they focus heavily on training, providing technical expertise to community members and partner staff to build lasting capacity.

We discuss Andrea's journey from NASA to The Peace Corps to Green Empowerment, how she worked to launch the first payment for ecosystems services – paying landowners to protect their forests – and how Green Empowerment is bringing the world closer to net-zero emissions by identifying indigenous leaders and methodologies that enable access to zero-carbon energy and clean water. 

You can learn more about Green Empowerment on their website, https://greenempowerment.org/.

Season two is powered by Climate People. If you are a software developer or recruiter looking to get into climate tech, Climate People is the best place to start. You can reach Brendan Anderson, CEO of Climate People, at [email protected].

Keep up with the show by following The Net Zero Life on Twitter and Instagram (@thenetzerolife). 

You can also get in touch at www.thenetzerolife.com or via email at [email protected].

What if we had a bank of consumer good sustainability ratings so that we could compare products environmental impacts without having to rely on shady marketing or generic symbols? And what if that bank of ratings was crowd-sourced in the same manner that individual people built Wikipedia, Reddit, and Waze and then combine those efforts with machine learning, artificial intelligence, and good old fashion expertise. Well, what you would get is Finch.

On the show today is Lizze Horvitz, CEO and Founder of Finch. Finch aims to decode sustainability and empower consumers to make better purchasing decisions. Lizzie started Finch in March of 2020 to educate people on the ins and outs of sustainability by turning complex scientific facts into simple, actionable insights. Launching as a browser extension, Finch fuses expert scores on products' environmental and social impacts with functional reviews from real people.

During the interview we discuss Lizzie's lifelong commitment to sustainability, how that helped her as a founder, the myth that purchasing sustainably means spending more money, and bar shampoo. (Yes, you read that right, bar shampoo.)

You can connect with Lizzie via email at [email protected] or follow her on LinkedIn.

Season two is powered by Climate People. If you are a software developer or recruiter looking to get into climate tech, Climate People is the best place to start. You can reach Brendan Anderson, CEO of Climate People, at [email protected].

Keep up with the show by following The Net Zero Life on Twitter and Instagram (@thenetzerolife). 

You can also get in touch at www.thenetzerolife.com or via email at [email protected].

One TRILLION single-use plastics and five GALLONS of water per dish. That is the current environmental footprint Linda Pouliot is trying to erase as she moves the world closer to net-zero emissions with her company Dishcraft Robotics.

Today's guest is Linda Pouliot, Co-Founder and CEO of Dishcraft Robotics. Dishcraft takes care of the dishes so kitchens can take care of people. Dishcraft is the only reusable foodware delivery solution that combines robotic automation, process innovation, and service to solve the environmental and labor challenges facing the foodservice industry today. 

Similar to a linen service, Dishcraft delivers and picks up a full range of reusable foodware items and washes them using advanced, patented technology that scrubs and inspects dishes multiple times, using cold, recirculated water. The result is a highly efficient, scalable system that conserves resources and delivers a consistent, unparalleled level of clean.  

​​Linda a serial entrepreneur, angel investor, artist and foodie who is passionate about robotics and hardware. Colleagues describe her as "the glue that sticks everything together"​ inside a company.

During the interview, Linda and I discuss her entrepreneurial journey, how she integrates her passion and background for art in her role as CEO,  and how Dishcraft is moving the world closer to net-zero emissions while reducing the amount of single-use plastics and wasted water currently plaguing the food industry.

You can connect with Linda via email [email protected] or follow her on LinkedIn. You can also read more about Linda at robolinda.com.

Season two is powered by Climate People. If you are a software developer or recruiter looking to get into climate tech, Climate People is the best place to start. You can reach Brendan Anderson, CEO of Climate People, at [email protected].

Keep up with the show by following The Net Zero Life on Twitter and Instagram (@thenetzerolife). 

You can also get in touch at www.thenetzerolife.com or via email at [email protected].

Per the IEA, energy efficiency and electrification are the two main drivers of achieving net-zero emissions in the building sector. If you think about it, buildings going up today will likely be standing in 2050. Meanwhile more and more people will need heating and cooling in their home as the climate changes. In order reach net-zero by 2050 total CO2 emissions from the buildings sector need to decline by more than 95% from almost 3 Gt in 2020 to around 120 Mt in 2050 in the NZE. And at the same time, buildings need to be healthy to ensure we can live in a warmer climate, one that is more friendly to viruses like COVID-19.   

Today on the show is James Dean, Founder and CEO of Oxygen8. Oxygen8 is a clean energy technology company developing products that improve the health, comfort, and energy efficiency of buildings.

James is a clean-tech entrepreneur with a passion for innovation, product development, healthy buildings, and sustainability. He has a BaSc in Civil Engineering from the University of Waterloo, and an MBA from the University of Western Ontario. Equally committed to the environment in his personal life, James recently built West Vancouver’s first net-zero energy Passive House, which was named North America’s Most Innovative Home in 2020.

During the interview, James and I discuss his net zero energy passive house, his lessons from from 20 years of starting and selling companies, how individuals can affect building codes in their cities and counties, and of course how Oxygen8 is moving the world closer to net-zero emissions while also making buildings more healthy by electrifying building ventilation.

James' reading suggestions and other additional readings:

• Healthy Buildings by Joe Allen

You can get in touch with James on LinkedIn or via email at [email protected], and with Oxygen8 at https://oxygen8.ca/.

Season two is powered by Climate People. If you are a software developer or recruiter looking to get into climate tech, Climate People is the best place to start. You can reach Brendan Anderson, CEO of Climate People, at [email protected].

Keep up with the show by following The Net Zero Life on Twitter and Instagram (@thenetzerolife). 

You can also get in touch at www.thenetzerolife.com or via email at [email protected].

In order to be net-zero you first need to reduce your emissions as much as possible and then you can neutralize the remaining with carbon offsets. Except many experts in the the climate space will say that is incorrect, and will not help us prevent the worst impacts of climate change. What you actually need to do is neutralize them with carbon removal.

On the show today is Nan Ransohoff, Head of Climate at Stripe, to teach us the difference between carbon removal and carbon offsets, and share details about how she and her team are working to ensure carbon removal companies are growing at the pace we need them to in order to reach net-zero by 2050.

Stripe is a billion dollar “start-up” that when not simplifying payments and increasing the GDP of the internet, is working to ensure carbon removal technology develops at the pace needed to prevent the most catastrophic effects of climate change. 

Nan and her team are working to build a large-scale, voluntary market for carbon removal by pooling demand from Stripe’s 1M+ users, and then using those funds to help promising new carbon removal technologies accelerate down the cost curve.

Nan and I discuss her journey into the world of climate, her mental model for climate action, and the role of carbon removal in achieving net-zero emissions. We also dive into why Stripe Climate is putting in the legwork so humanity has the menu of options it needs by 2050 to reach net-zero emissions. 

Additional resources mentioned in the episode:

• Saul Griffith's Blog

You can get in touch with Nan on Twitter @nanransohoff, and via email at [email protected].

Season two is powered by Climate People. If you are a software developer or recruiter looking to get into climate tech, Climate People is the best place to start. You can reach Brendan Anderson, CEO of Climate People, at [email protected].

Keep up with the show by following The Net Zero Life on Twitter and Instagram (@thenetzerolife). 

You can also get in touch at www.thenetzerolife.com or via email at [email protected].

The The Net Zero Life is working to build a community of sustainable minded people that bring the world closer to net-zero emissions. Which is why I'm incredibly excited to share today's episode for you.

Candice Ammori is the founder of On Deck's Climate Tech fellowship, where she brings together entrepreneurs, climate technologists, and experts across the climate landscape to amplify each of their innovative and sustainable ideas. 

After studying climate policy and business in undergrad she planned to devote her life to the ethics of AI and do a PhD in statistics. But in 2018 IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5ºC came out during her first semester of grad school, and she knew she wanted to commit the rest of her career to climate.

As the Director of the On Deck Climate Tech fellowship, Candice has brought the larger climate tech ecosystem closer together and helped many talented people start impactful organizations.

You can get in touch with Candice on Twitter @CAmmori, and via email at [email protected].

Season two is powered by Climate People. If you are a software developer or recruiter looking to get into climate tech, Climate People is the best place to start.

Keep up with the show by following The Net Zero Life on Twitter and Instagram (@thenetzerolife). 

You can also get in touch at www.thenetzerolife.com or via email at [email protected].

How do you ensure 24/7 access to zero-carbon energy? One way is by harnessing the power of the oceans. Inna Braverman, founder of Eco Wave Power, and team are to working to capture wave energy and turn it into electricity for the grid. Under her leadership, the company installed its first grid-connected wave energy array, secured a significant projects pipeline of 325.7MW, and became the first Israeli company to ever list on Nasdaq Stockholm. Recently the company was also listed on Nasdaq US.

During the interview, Inna and I chat about her search for finding a role in clean energy which led her to found Eco Wave Power (EWP). We discuss the future of wave energy, what governments and individuals can do to help accelerate the technology, and EWP's plan to install their technology across the world. 

Inna Braverman founded Eco Wave Power at the age of 24.

Inna was recognized by Wired Magazine as one of the “Females Changing the World”, by Fast Company as one of the world’s “Most Creative People in Business for 2020” and is the winner of the United Nations “Global Climate Action Award.”

For Inna, clean electricity is a very personal journey, as she was born two weeks before the Chernobyl Nuclear Disaster and suffered respiratory arrest due to the pollution in the region. Luckily, her mother, a nurse, came to her crib on time and gave her mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, which saved her life.

She got a second chance in life and decided to devote it to the development of a clean and safe method of electricity production.

You can get in touch with Inna through Eco Wave Power's website.

Season two is powered by Climate People. If you are a software developer or recruiter looking to get into climate tech, Climate People is the best place to start.

Keep up with the show by following The Net Zero Life on Twitter and Instagram (@thenetzerolife). 

You can also get in touch at www.thenetzerolife.com or via email at [email protected].

You can't change what you can't measure. Taylor Francis, co-founder of Watershed, is working to change that for carbon accounting. Watershed is building the next generation carbon solutions platform. Not only do they help companies track carbon for each part of their operation, Watershed helps them come up with an action plan to bring that number down to net zero. Taylor and the Watershed team are building the Google Maps for carbon accounting except they are building the map and the path. 

During the interview, Taylor and I chat about his search for finding a role in the fight to stop climate change which led him to co-found Watershed. We discuss the future of carbon accounting, what individuals can learn from fortune 500 company decarbonization plans, and Watershed’s goal to remove 500 million tons of CO2 from the atmosphere.

Taylor is a co-founder of Watershed, a software platform that helps businesses get to net zero carbon faster. 

Taylor was an early organizer for The Climate Reality Project and has a background in public policy. With a keen interest in entrepreneurship, Taylor later joined Stripe where he worked on Atlas, a toolkit to help founders and businesses get started.

At Watershed Taylor spends his time working with forward-thinking companies to help them bake carbon impact into everyday business decisions. He lives in San Francisco where Watershed is based.

You can get in touch with Taylor via email [email protected] or through Watershed's website.

Season two is powered by Climate People. If you are a software developer or recruiter looking to get into climate tech, Climate People is the best place to start.

Keep up with the show by following The Net Zero Life on Twitter and Instagram (@thenetzerolife). 

You can also get in touch at www.thenetzerolife.com or via email at [email protected].

Show Notes:

https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2021/06/climate-change-green-vortex-america/619228/

Hal Harvey - https://www.amazon.com/Designing-Climate-Solutions-Policy-Low-Carbon/dp/1610919564 

Alaska Airlines - https://news.microsoft.com/2020/10/22/alaska-airlines-and-microsoft-sign-partnership-to-reduce-carbon-emissions-with-flights-powered-by-sustainable-aviation-fuel-in-key-routes/ 

What is the best thing you can do to prevent climate change at this moment in time? Vote for policies that bring the world closer to net-zero emissions. In our first episode of Season Two Nathan speaks with Naomi Baum, COO of ACEEE, the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, on how policy is the most effective tool we have to reach net-zero emissions and the different roles efficiency and innovation have in helping us reach that target. 

During the show, Nathan and Naomi discuss:

• Her experience getting into politics, what it takes to get a bill signed into law, learnings from ACEEE's work, and her climate-friendly tips and tricks.

Naomi is the Chief Operating Officer of ACEEE, the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy. Naomi is an expert on all on things policy and Washington. She earned a bachelor of arts in political science and French from Wellesley College and a master’s in public administration from the Kennedy School at Harvard University. Naomi has more than 20 years of legislative and oversight experience and has worked on a wide range of policy issues. Before joining ACEEE, she was the executive director of the bipartisan Congressional Oversight Panel and prior to that she served as the staff director for the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship. Since 2012, Naomi has been COO of ACEEE, a nonprofit research organization that develops transformative policies to reduce energy waste and combat climate change.

You can get in touch with Naomi via email [email protected]  or through ACEEE's website.

Season two is powered by Climate People. If you are a software developer or recruiter looking to get into climate tech, Climate People is the best place to start.

Keep up with the show by following The Net Zero Life on Twitter and Instagram (@thenetzerolife). 

You can also get in touch at www.thenetzerolife.com or via email at [email protected].

Building performance standards. The policies typically require existing buildings larger than a specified size to meet a certain energy efficiency standard, based on either energy use or greenhouse gas emissions per square foot of space. This effectively requires owners of less-efficient buildings to make efficiency upgrades by certain deadlines, generally several years in the future.

EnergyGuide labels – these labels show the estimated cost of using a certain appliance model, allowing consumers to differentiate between options - https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/how-use-energyguide-label-shop-home-appliances

ENERGYSTAR – this is a certification, where products above a certain level of efficiency display an ENERGY STAR sticker - https://www.energystar.gov/

Utilities can run programs that help customers save energy. During the show Naomi discusses utilities’ effort to improve energy efficiency in homes and business by providing customers incentives to make energy-efficient upgrades.