Zero: The Climate Race

Australia is in a unique place when it comes to the energy transition. It is the world’s largest exporter of coal and a leading exporter of gas, yet has set a target to reduce emissions by 43% and have 82% renewable electricity by 2030.

It is also caught  juggling relations between the US, its military ally, and China, its biggest trading partner — as the two superpowers fight over trade. It is an unenviable challenge for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who has just been voted back into the office with an impressive new majority and also wants Australia to host the COP31 climate summit in 2026.

This week, David Stringer, Bloomberg Green's managing editor in Asia, joins Zero to unpack Albanese’s full agenda and what his re-election means for Australia’s climate ambitions.

Explore further:

• Australian PM’s Next Campaign Is to Secure COP31 Climate Talks - Bloomberg
• China Slowdown Has Australia’s Economy Under Pressure, Chalmers Says - Bloomberg
• Trump Backlash Helps Australia’s Leader to Historic Re-Election - Bloomberg 

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to: Jessica Beck, Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam and Siobhan Wagner. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at [email protected]. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

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What connects Hamburg, the Thai Royal court and the conservation of tigers? A pioneering young pharmacist who wanted to do good in his new home of Thailand. Find out how his vision yielded B.Grimm--one of Asia’s most impactful businesses. 
https://sponsored.bloomberg.com/media/bgrimm/the-stewards-of-compassion-podcast
This episode is sponsored by B.GRIMM.

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This week, Canadians elected Mark Carney, leader of the Liberal party, to be their prime minister. Carney is a newcomer to politics, but is well known in international finance and climate circles, running both the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, and founding the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ). Canada is far from reaching its legally mandated goal to achieve net zero by 2050, and has one of the highest emissions per capita of anywhere in the world. Now Carney has been elected, can he translate his international climate leadership into domestic policy, or will climate fall by the wayside as he fortifies Canada against a trade war with the US?

Explore further:

• Carney’s Anti-Trump Agenda for Canada Nods to Climate  
• Canada’s Mark Carney Treads a Fine Line on Climate in a Tight Election
• Arctic Sea Ice Shrinks to Record Winter Low as Earth Heats Up

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to: Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam and Siobhan Wagner. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at [email protected]. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Three years ago, Australia was on the verge of an election dominated by a wave of independent MPs who promised a climate change reckoning. But climate talk seems to have taken a backseat in the current campaign ahead of the May 3 national poll.

For the Bloomberg Australia Podcast, host Rebecca Jones and Bloomberg’s David Stringer break down the energy policies being pushed by the major parties this election campaign. 

Find more episodes from the Bloomberg Australia Podcast at https://www.bloomberg.com/podcasts/series/bloomberg-australia 

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Global investment in clean energy hit a record $2 trillion last year, according to BloombergNEF. But developing countries see only a sliver of that funding. Private investors are wary of unfamiliar markets, currency risks and perceived instability. So how do we change that? Avinash Persaud, special adviser on climate risks to the president of the Inter-American Development Bank, joins Zero to explore how we can de-risk investments, unlock private capital, and supercharge the global clean energy transition. From carbon markets to sustainability-linked bonds, where should the focus be to make the biggest impact?

Explore other episodes from the Moving Money series:

• These ‘Beautiful’ Banks Are Being Pitched to Save Climate Finance
• How the Financial System Can Work for Climate, Not Against It

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to: Mythili Rao, Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam, Blake Maples and Siobhan Wagner. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at [email protected]. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

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Developing countries require trillions of dollars a year to transition to clean energy and build climate-resilient infrastructure. So where will the money come from? Avinash Persaud, special advisor on climate risks to the president of the Inter-American Development Bank, joins Zero to make the case for giving more money to Multilateral Development Banks (MDBs), which already funnel hundreds of billions of dollars a year to poorer countries around the globe, much of which goes to climate projects. His pitch is now harder than ever to make as the US slashes international climate finance and European countries reduce their overseas aid budgets to support defense spending. 

Past episodes of Moving Money:

• How the financial system can work for climate, not against it
• The fight over finance brewing at COP29

Explore further:

• COP29: Exxon CEO Darren Woods Interview Transcript From UN Climate Summit
• Unlocking Climate Trillions With a Global Plan From a Sinking Island - Bloomberg 
• Debt-for-Nature Swaps Gain Traction Among Developing Countries - Bloomberg

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to: Mythili Rao, Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam, Blake Maples and Siobhan Wagner. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at [email protected]. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Even with all the turmoil of the past few months, the energy transition isn’t taking a break. Last year, global spending on clean-energy technologies was more than $2 trillion, according to BloombergNEF. Yet only a small fraction of that money makes its way to developing countries. This week on Zero, Avinash Persaud, climate advisor to the president of Inter-American Development Bank, joins our Moving Money series, and answers the question: how do we make the financial system work for climate action, not against it?

Explore further:

• COP29 Is All About Money. Get Ready for Fights: Moving Money
• Unlocking Climate Trillions With a Global Plan From a Sinking Island 

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to: Mythili Rao, Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam, Blake Maples and Siobhan Wagner. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at [email protected]. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There is a lot happening in the world of EVs. In the US, Teslas are being hawked from the White House lawn, while in China, BYD has announced a battery that can be charged to go 400km in just 5 minutes. All the while a rearrangement of global trade and tariffs is sending shockwaves through the system. This week on Zero, Bloomberg’s global automotive editor Craig Trudell unpacks the latest twists and turns in the EV revolution.

Explore further:

• BYD Is Winning the Global Race to Make Cheaper EVs
• Chinese EVs Make Inroads in Nigeria as Gasoline Prices Rise
• Sign up to the Hyperdrive newsletter. 

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd. Special thanks to: Mythili Rao, Sommer Saadi, Mohsis Andam, Blake Maples and Siobhan Wagner. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at [email protected]. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Depending on who you ask, AI is either going to save the world or end it. The technology’s capacity for data-crunching and problem-saving can help predict weather events, making it easier to optimize power grids, prepare for natural disasters, and maximize crop output. But artificial intelligence is also energy intensive – and easy to apply to ethically questionable ends. For all of these reasons, Priya Donti, professor of electrical engineering and AI at MIT, decided to found Climate Change AI, a group dedicated to applying AI to tackle climate problems.  

In this episode, which first ran in May of 2024, Donti tells Akshat Rathi about some of the projects the group is funding around the world, and what the democratization of AI would look like in practice.  

Explore further:

• Past episode about Microsoft’s rising AI emissions, and President Brad Smith’s claim that the AI will do more good than harm
• Past episode with African Development Bank president Akinwumi Adesina about climate innovation projects across the African continent
• Past episode with climate scientist and  champion for developing countries Saleemul Huq

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. This episode was produced by Mythili Rao. Special thanks this week to Kira Bindrim, Anna Mazarakis and Alicia Clanton. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at [email protected]. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

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Water scarcity is no longer a distant threat: By 2030, fresh water demand is expected to outpace supply by 40%. The effects of water stress will be felt in industries from agriculture to e-commerce, putting up to $70 trillion of global GDP at risk, according to the World Resources Institute. Bloomberg Intelligence researcher Melanie Rua is the co-author of a new report on water scarcity. She joins Zero to discuss just how much financial impact companies are already seeing as a result of this issue– and what measures they might take to mitigate it.

Explore further:

• Past episode about Environmental, Social, and Governance policy uncertainty
• Past episode with Breakthrough Energy Ventures’ Eric Toone about green investment opportunities
• Reporting on Galy, a lab-grown cotton startup addressing water consumption

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. This episode was produced by Mythili Rao. Special thanks this week to Siobhan Wagner, Sommer Saadi and Magnus Henriksson. Thoughts or suggestions? Email us at [email protected]. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit https://www.bloomberg.com/green.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.