Eight Minute Climate Fix
Quick and concise, Eight Minute Climate Fix covers everything that's happening in climate action and the energy transition. We tackle the complexity of the changes happening in our world and make it easy, and quick, for anyone to understand.
Our sister podcast, More Than Eight Minutes, includes the extended versions with our guests for anyone who wants to go a level deeper into these issues.
Episodes
110 episodes
Smart Cities - Episode 111
Many large municipalities are using a combination of sensors, data management and analytical tools to dynamically manage the flow of people and cars within their borders. These Smart Cities are helping to not only improve the quality of life of...
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Season 3
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Episode 111
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7:28
Wholesale Power Pricing Basics - Episode 110
As more corporations are using Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) or Virtual Power Purchase Agreements (VPPAs) to procure renewable energy, these contracts are exposing companies to the risks and variabilities of the wholesale power market.
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Season 3
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Episode 110
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9:13
Reflecting on the Climate Activities of 2024 - Episode 109
Paul wraps up 2024 with an episode looking back on the major trends and news stories from this past year. From good news stories such as the retirement of the UK's last coal facility to hard news such as the realization that we may have already...
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Season 3
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Episode 109
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8:05
What Companies are Doing to Address the Sustainability of Their Product Packaging - Episode 108
As the holiday season descends upon us, the importance of sustainable packaging is never more important. In this episode, Paul discusses not only some of the ways that prominent companies are addressing how their are packaging and shipping thei...
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Season 3
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Episode 108
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8:49
How Electricity Load Growth May Complicate the Energy Transition - Episode 107
Since the 1990's, electricity demand has remained relatively flat despite the economic growth of the country. But as increased electrification and demand for new data centers intensifies, that demand for new power is changing. Utilities are hav...
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Season 3
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Episode 107
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6:59
The Changing Chemistry of Lithium Ion Batteries - Episode 106
Lithium Ion batteries are the backbone of the EV revolution. And car manufacturers are constantly seeking new ways to remove cost and improve the range of these battery packs. Part of their solution has been to tweak the chemistry of these batt...
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Season 3
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Episode 106
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7:38
What's Next for Gas Distribution Companies? (Jan Rosenow - Regulatory Assistance Project) - Episode 105
With millions of miles of gas distribution pipelines under our feet, the transition away from gas and toward electrification needs to account for that existing infrastructure somehow. And that comes with risks, not only to gas distribution comp...
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Season 3
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Episode 105
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8:52
Systems Thinking for the Energy Transition - Episode 104
In this episode, Paul steps back from the individual technologies and business processes that are driving the energy transition, and looks at the interconnected systems that need to be reimagined as well. For some systems, this may be intuitive...
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Season 3
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Episode 104
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7:55
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - Episode 103
As the world launches into COP29 in Azerbaijan, this week, it may be useful for us to review some of the sustainability metrics that the world has agreed to as a foundation for peace, prosperity - and a world devoid of climate change.Th...
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Season 3
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Episode 103
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8:08
Why Food Waste is Such a Big Climate Issue - Episode 102
The United Nations estimates that we lose about one third of our global food supply every year to waste and loss. And that organic matter contributes about 10% of our global emissions each year.Getting a hold on our food waste is a big ...
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Season 3
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Episode 102
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7:27
Debating the DOE Report on Pathways to New Advanced Nuclear - Episode 101
The DOE recently released a report outlining a pathway for the US to meet recent pledges of tripling of domestic nuclear capacity by 2050. Nuclear needs to play a role in a clean energy economy, but the industry may be fooling itself in thinkin...
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Season 3
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Episode 101
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8:18
An Agile Strategy for Climate Action - Episode 100
Paul reflects a bit on having just completed the second year of hosting Eight Minutes, and takes a moment to indulge in how the process of developing climate strategy needs to change if we are to keep up with the rapid advances in climate indus...
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Season 2
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Episode 100
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8:40
How Climate Change is Intensifying the Ferocity of Hurricanes - Episode 99
After the devastating impacts of Hurricanes Helene and Milton over the past few weeks, it's a good time to review the science on why (and how) warming sea temperatures are affecting the intensity of these mega storms. Big, intense tropical cycl...
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Season 2
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Episode 99
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8:02
Understanding Your Utility Bill - Episode 98
For all of the economic advantages being created by the energy transition, some of that value isn't being fully captured by consumers who don't fully understand their utility bill. As energy prices are rising and these bills are becoming more c...
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Season 2
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Episode 98
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10:03
Geothermal vs Geothermal - Episode 97
We sometimes use certain terms in the energy transition interchangeably - chief among them is "geothermal". In this episode, Paul discusses some of the different types of emerging technologies that get tagged with this moniker - and why and how...
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Season 2
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Episode 97
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7:23
Project 2025 (Part 2) - Episode 96
In this follow-up episode to last week's overview of Project 2025's climate related suggestions, Paul digs deeper into some other recommendations of the conservative roadmap, including its emphasis of national security as well as its animosity ...
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Season 2
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Episode 96
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10:59
Project 2025 (Part 1) - Episode 95
In this first of two parts, Paul takes a deeper dive into the climate implications of the conservative policy playbook, Project 2025. Paul unpacks how the document lays out a vision for a smaller federal government, and how doing so may impact ...
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Season 2
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Episode 95
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9:55
VPPs and Commercial Buildings as Grid Assets (Courtney Blodgett - Edo) - Episode 94
The demand for electricity continues to go up. But instead of relying upon utilities to build more dirtier gas and oil fired power plants, a more novel approach is emerging. These Virtual Power Plants (VPPs) aggregate together a number of resid...
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Season 2
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Episode 94
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8:09
Tax Credit Transferability - Episode 93
In order for the IRA to realize all of the benefits from the subsidies it allocated to renewable energy and advanced manufacturing, the legislation needed to revise how tax credits were going to work. The traditional form of tax equity financin...
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Season 2
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Episode 93
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7:50
Ocean Based Carbon Removal Solutions - Episode 92
The ocean is already a huge carbon sink - and it could do even more. A burgeoning industry of carbon removal solutions, looking to leverage the enormous potential of our marine system, is starting to emerge.Paul looks at how our oceans ...
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Season 2
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Episode 92
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7:14
The Nuclear ADVANCE Act - Episode 91
The nuclear industry achieved something remarkable in July - full bipartisan support of new legislation aimed at supercharging growth of this clean energy technology.Paul digs into the specifics of the ADVANCE act, why it makes sense fo...
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Season 2
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Episode 91
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7:41
Market Based vs Location Based Emissions Accounting Rules - Episode 90
Let's get into the wonky world of emissions accounting, where the corporate standard for reporting is in the process of being refined. The GHG Protocol Corporate Standard has solicited input into whether a market-based or location-based approac...
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Season 2
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Episode 90
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8:18
Where the Energy Transition is Succeeding - Episode 89
While we talk a lot about the energy "transition", some countries have already fully pivoted to renewable power. In this episode, Paul takes a look at how these countries were able to successfully make the change, while outlining a few common l...
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Season 2
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Episode 89
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7:07
The Interconnection Queue is Broken - Episode 88
The US has enough renewable energy stuck in the permitting process to fully replace every single gas and coal facility on the current power grid. But the interconnection process, a convoluted analysis of impact, costs, siting and permitting req...
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Season 2
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Episode 88
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7:42
Embodied Carbon - Episode 87
In this episode, Paul discusses why the up-front emissions of new products and new construction can be so important in climate activity. These locked-in, embedded emissions could account for up to a quarter of the globe's total carbon - and ove...
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Season 2
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Episode 87
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7:33