Solving for Climate

Data centres are not the most glamorous topic of discussion but they are everywhere, powering our modern, digital economy. But they can also power swimming pools, breweries and laundries, as Mark Bjornsgaard tells Hannah and Rob on this episode. 97% of the electricity that goes into a computer comes out as heat. It’s an incredibly inefficient process, and more often than not this heat isn’t used. So, rather than building these data centres in the middle of nowhere, Mark’s company Deep Green is taking computing power to where heat is needed, offering a precious resource to communities across the UK. Could this be scaled up for use across the world?GuestMark Bjornsgaard, Founder of Deep Green Co-hostsHannah Ritchie, Deputy Editor and Lead Researcher, Our World In Data @_HannahRitchieRob Stewart, Co-founder and Director of Sustainability, KobaSubscribe to Hannah's Substack 'Sustainability by numbers'Want to get in touch? Email solvingforclimate@gmail.com

Despite the inexorable growth of Generative AI tools such as ChatGPT or Midjourney in the past couple of years, painfully little is known - or at least publicised - about their carbon impact. However, Dr Sasha Luccioni is on a mission to change that. Hannah and Rob talk to her about how she’s trying to maximise the benefits of AI, while minimising its hidden climate costs. Why is AI development such a black box? And could AI be part of the solution to the climate crisis?GuestSasha Luccioni, AI and Climate Lead, Hugging FaceCo-hostsHannah Ritchie, Deputy Editor and Lead Researcher, Our World In Data @_HannahRitchieRob Stewart, Co-founder and Director of Sustainability, KobaVisit Sasha's website and subscribe to Hannah's Substack 'Sustainability by numbers'Want to get in touch? Email solvingforclimate@gmail.com

How do we buy ourselves some time to save our planet? Humans are responsible for the immense damage inflicted on our planet since the Industrial Revolution, but now we have the chance to do some good and repair the climate. Hannah and Rob discuss the power of human ingenuity and ambition with Founder of the Centre for Climate Repair at Cambridge University, Professor Sir David King. His work finding ambitious solutions to the climate crisis can sound almost unreal. Making clouds brighter to reflect more sunlight? Refreezing the arctic? Using whale poo to regenerate the ocean’s biodiversity to store more carbon? He joins Hannah and Rob explore these solutions and more in this week’s episode.GuestProfessor Sir David King Founder of the Centre for Climate Repair @Sir_David_King Co-hostsHannah Ritchie, Deputy Editor and Lead Researcher, Our World In DataRob Stewart, Co-founder and Director of Sustainability, KobaSubscribe to Hannah's Substack 'Sustainability by numbers'Want to get in touch? Email solvingforclimate@gmail.com

‘It’s obvious that oil is on the decline’, says energy strategist Kingsmill Bond. He joins Hannah and Rob to talk about the energy transition and he’s got an optimistic take: he says that we reached peak fossil fuel demand 10 years ago, and give it another five and oil will be a thing of the past. Kingsmill tells Hannah and Rob how we can move past a narrative that’s been peddled by the fossil fuel bosses telling us that renewables are too expensive, and why learning from the tech shifts of the past will be key to predicting the future of green energy.GuestKingsmill Bond, Energy Strategist at RMI, kingsmillbond.com Co-hostsHannah Ritchie, Deputy Editor and Lead Researcher, Our World In DataRob Stewart, Co-founder and Director of Sustainability, KobaSubscribe to Kingsmill's Substack 'Renewable Revolution' and to Hannah's Substack 'Sustainability by numbers'Want to get in touch? Email solvingforclimate@gmail.com

Hannah Ritchie and Rob Stewart are fascinated by solutions to the climate crisis and the innovators, entrepreneurs and scientists behind them. They want to shine the spotlight on the people working tirelessly to change the narrative on the climate crisis to show that there's brilliant stuff going on out there, and that all isn't lost.Subscribe to the feed now to listen to the first two episodes when they drop next Thursday 7th November.