Boiling Point

Latest Episodes:

The Climate Law That Trump Couldn’t Quite Kill Oct 22, 2026

Show notes

In her new book, The Carbon Wave, political scientist Leah Stokes traces the years of work involved in the creation of the Inflation Reduction Act, the landmark climate law that she helped shape. She talks with Miranda Green about the law’s legacy, how it has endured despite Trump, and the future of clean energy in the U.S. And Boiling Point reporter Noah Haggerty recaps the week in climate news.

Join Boiling Point in its second season as independent investigative reporter Miranda Green walks listeners through the climate challenges and solutions facing our natural world. Produced by LA Times Studios, the weekly series will feature interviews with Los Angeles Times reporters, state officials, business leaders and scientific experts discussing the latest news and trends impacting Californians and the country.

Is there a Greener AI option? Oct 15, 2026

Show notes

Artificial Intelligence or AI seems to be all around us. It’s part of every conversation, every news cycle, and in every product. When people talk about AI, data centers are typically not far behind. But data centers use up a ton of energy and only about 24% of it comes from wind and solar.

Host Miranda Green speaks with Los Angeles Times reporter Blanca Begert about how this new reality is driving immense pushback in California, and forcing state leaders to adopt a new slate of bills aimed at curbing water use and getting tech companies to pay out for certain electric grid upgrades.

But there may be a solution. Green also speaks with Cassie Buhler, a Berkeley researcher who says there may already be an alternative to commercial AI that uses roughly 100 times less power.

Introducing: The California Politics Podcast Oct 08, 2026

Show notes

Hosted by Emmy Award-winning journalist Beth Ruyak, California Politics Podcast is a weekly show examining the latest news, trends and policies shaping the Golden State. Each week during the legislative session, Ruyak sits down with lawmakers, academics and journalists from the Los Angeles Times Sacramento bureau and across the state to break down Capitol decisions and their impact on Californians. The series unpacks complex policy shifts through reporting and analysis, spotlighting critical races, high-stakes legislation and key power struggles across the state.
Legendary journalist George Skelton has covered nine California governors. In our first episode, the L.A. Times columnist sizes up the governors he's known, what made them successful and whether the next one can measure up. Then, L.A. Times politics editor Phil Willon joins us to discuss why state politics coverage matters now more than ever.

Boiling Point Live at Climate Week NYC Oct 01, 2026

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How do you get more people to care about climate change — and tell riveting stories along the way? Boiling Point explored that question at a live event during this year’s New York City Climate Week at Columbia University’s Climate School. Host Miranda Green was joined by climate activist and author Bill McKibben, New York Times climate reporter David Gelles, Woo Qiyun, a senior communications manager at the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and Alexis Abramson, dean of the Columbia Climate School.

The Myth of Forest Management Sep 24, 2026

Show notes

Boiling Point’s Miranda Green and Heated’s Emily Atkin team up in a collaborative episode exploring the truth behind forest management. They speak with principal ecologist and co-founder of the John Muir Project, Chad Hanson, and Hugh Safford, a retired ecologist for the US Forest Service and director of the The Safford Lab at UC-Davis. Together, they dive into the fiery debate around logging, thinning, prescribed burns and how best to approach fire prevention in a warming world.

Can Your Plants Stop California's Wildfires? Sep 17, 2026

Show notes

Wildfires in California are getting bigger and more destructive. Now, state regulators are turning to homeowners to take a new approach to fire prevention– starting with their gardens. Host Miranda Green talks with Los Angeles Times reporter Noah Haggerty about new “Zone Zero’ rules aimed at making homes and communities more resilient to flames and embers. She also speaks with Megafire Action founder and CEO Matt Weiner about California’s leadership on fire resiliency.

The Colorado River Is Experiencing a Megadrought. Can The West Adapt? Sep 03, 2026

Show notes

The Colorado River has sustained communities, farms and cities across the American West for generations. But the river is shrinking due to hotter temperatures and less rainfall. As reservoirs that depend on the Colorado reach all-time lows, the seven states that rely on the river are fighting over who should use less water. Host Miranda Green talks with Los Angeles Times water reporter Ian James about what happens when there simply isn’t enough water to go around and what innovations California agencies and companies are testing out in order to solve the problem.

Bonus Episode: Are Trump’s Offshore Wind Settlements a “Sham”? AG Rob Bonta Thinks So. Aug 28, 2026

Show notes

California on Friday filed its 88th lawsuit against the Trump administration– this time suing them for an “illegal” settlement it entered into to stop an offshore lease sale in Morro Bay.

In this bonus episode, host Miranda Green speaks with Attorney General Rob Bonta about the decision to sue Trump, why he believes Trump’s deals are politically motivated and illegal, and what to expect for the remaining offshore wind leases in California. They dig into California’s propensity to file lawsuits, and with Bonta catching flack for a recent lawsuit filed against Paramount, they talk about whether it’s fair to call California “the country’s regulator.”

Can Offshore Wind Survive the Trump Administration? Aug 27, 2026

Show notes

California once bet big on offshore wind to help power its clean-energy future, but the Trump administration is now paying developers billions to walk away from their projects. As California’s remaining offshore-wind leases hang in the balance, the state is fighting back in court. Host Miranda Green speaks with Los Angeles Times reporter Hayley Smith and U.S. Congressman Jared Huffman about the politics, legal battles and economic stakes behind the administration’s push to replace clean-energy investments with fossil fuels.

A Super El Niño Is Coming. Are We Ready? Aug 20, 2026

Show notes

From an unnamed weather event to an SNL punchline, our awareness of El Niño has grown rapidly over the past several decades. And now, as climate change raises the stakes and a potentially historic El Niño approaches, how prepared are we for what comes next? Host Miranda Green talks with Los Angeles Times reporter Rong-Gong Lin II about how California communities are preparing, and climate scientist Daniel Swain about what this El Niño could mean—and what happens when the systems designed to warn us begin to break down.

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