Energy Switch

To curb global warming, governments often focus on reducing CO2 emissions. But many are now also adapting to a changing climate, from expanding air conditioning and passive cooling techniques, to eng…

The common narrative about human population -- that it will grow forever -- is dead wrong. Demographic experts now agree that population will peak soon and begin to decline, with profound impacts on …

Small reactors have been used on aircraft carriers for decades. Similar designs are now proposed for power generation and industrial heat. They could be built in factories and assembled on site, with…

There are more wildfires in some areas, though globally they’re down. Climate change contributes, but there are other factors which have made forests and cities more fire prone and fires more damagin…

General readers want straight answers on climate. But climate science is complex and full of nuance. This excites scientists, whose research explores the leading edge. But it makes climate reporting …

The US natural gas pipeline network carries gas from where it’s produced to the many places it's used: power plants, factories and millions of homes. Proponents want more pipelines, to replace more c…

Plastic is cheap, lightweight, strong and versatile, so we use it in millions of products. But there are challenges with disposal and recycling, meaning plastic is increasingly in our oceans, our wat…

In part 1, we talked about the size of planned offshore wind farms, and potential impacts to fisheries, marine mammals and property values. Now we discuss the cost to build offshore wind farms, the r…

The US is contemplating massive new offshore wind projects. Proponents see these as part of decarbonizing our electricity system. Opponents worry about impacts to fisheries, marine mammals, tourism a…

Working in energy, particularly oil and gas, is not as popular as it once was in the US. Electricity and lower carbon energies are more readily embraced by young people. We’ll talk to two young profe…

We use a lot of biofuels in the US -- corn ethanol now makes up 10% of every gallon of gasoline. Ethanol made from cellulose, from agricultural waste or non-food crops, has been in development for ye…

To wrap up this discussion, Dr. Bjorn Lomborg and Dr. Andrew Dessler lay out their strategies for addressing climate change. One favors adaptation, and tackling other pressing global problems that co…

Warming temperatures and their potential impacts are predicted to escalate in the coming decades. Dr. Andrew Dessler, a climate scientist, argues for urgent action to reduce emissions. Dr. Bjorn Lomb…

Everyone loves electricity…and no one loves powerlines. But we need more of them. New lines face many challenges, in permitting, siting and eminent domain; allocating costs among stakeholders; and wo…

Fission, the splitting of atoms, makes the heat that drives our nuclear reactors. Fusion, the fusing together of atoms, powers the stars, including our sun -- which means that fusion already powers E…

In Part 1 of this discussion, we heard ideas to decarbonize cement and steel. We’ll conclude with a look at fertilizer, which has made modern agriculture possible, and petrochemicals and plastic, whi…

Cement and steel have created the modern world: they make our buildings, roads, machines and products. These two industries emit nearly as much CO2 as our entire electricity system -- but they’re dif…

Everything in our modern lives has energy inputs and emissions outputs -- and that’s certainly the case for our food. It’s not just all the energy that powers the equipment required to grow, transpor…

In part 1, we focused on India’s electricity, and the potential to expand it using coal and/or solar. We continue with the growth of 2- and 3-wheel electric vehicles in India, the potential to manufa…

India is the third largest energy consumer and carbon emitter in the world, with the fastest growing energy demand. Today coal makes three-quarters of their electricity, with the other 25% solar and …