Solving for Climate

How much attention should we give to carbon removal technology versus stopping carbon emissions in the first place? Climate scientist Zeke Hausfather discusses the opportunities for carbon removal technologies including advanced rock weathering, direct air capture and ocean storage.Season two of Solving for Climate is sponsored by Xlinks xlinks.coZeke Hausfather, Climate scientist with Stripe Climate, Carbon Brief, the IPCC and Berkeley EarthCo-hosts Hannah Ritchie, Deputy Editor and Lead Researcher, Our World in Data @_HannahRitchie Rob Stewart, Co-founder and Director of Sustainability, KobaSubscribe to Hannah's Substack 'Sustainability by numbers'Want to get in touch? Email solvingforclimate@gmail.comMadeleine Drury, Series Producer

The maritime industry is responsible for roughly 3% of global emissions. So one solution to help reduce fuel consumption has already set sail. Head of Engineering at BAR Technologies, Lauren Eatwell has steered a project called WindWings which retrofits large steel and glass sails to ships. But will the wider industry move fast enough to meet climate targets?Season two of Solving for Climate is sponsored by Xlinks xlinks.coLauren Eatwell, Head of Engineering at BAR TechnologiesCo-hosts Hannah Ritchie, Deputy Editor and Lead Researcher, Our World in Data @_HannahRitchie Rob Stewart, Co-founder and Director of Sustainability, KobaSubscribe to Hannah's Substack 'Sustainability by numbers'Want to get in touch? Email solvingforclimate@gmail.comMadeleine Drury, Series Producer

What are carbon credits? Can you eat fossil fuels? Why is nuclear energy back in fashion? Co-hosts Dr Hannah Ritchie and Rob Stewart will answer these questions and more in a new season of Solving for Climate. Season two will be travelling sustainably into your podcast feeds at the end of February. Make sure you’re following the podcast so you are notified when episode one arrives.Season two of Solving for Climate is sponsored by Xlinks xlinks.coCo-hosts Hannah Ritchie, Deputy Editor and Lead Researcher, Our World in Data @_HannahRitchie Rob Stewart, Co-founder and Director of Sustainability, KobaWant to get in touch? Email solvingforclimate@gmail.comSubscribe to Hannah's Substack 'Sustainability by numbers'Madeleine Drury, Series Producer

‘Plastic has long been the fossil fuel industry’s ‘plan B’’ says Luke Haverhals, co-founder of NFW, a start-up dedicated to creating materials with plants, not oil. Plastic has a stranglehold over our lives, but it’s not good for us, and it also keeps the fossil fuel industry in business. Luke is proposing a solution to this - creating four different materials that can be used to make anything from clothes to shoes to furniture, that can return to the earth at the end of their life. Is this the solution to the plastic crisis?GuestDr Luke Haverhals, CEO of Natural Fiber Welding 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.comProduced by Rachel Balmer

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.comProduced by Rachel Balmer

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'Produced by Rachel BalmerWant 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.comProduced by Rachel Balmer

‘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.comProduced by Rachel Balmer