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Canada's largest sustainable community takes shape Mar 19, 2025

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In this episode, I'm joined by Toms Lumsden and Young (development manager and urban planner, respectively) to explore Blatchford, an ambitious sustainable community being built on the grounds of a former municipal airport in Edmonton, Alberta (Canada’s most conservative province). We dig into how this city-led, mixed-use development is creating a carbon-neutral community with pedestrian-first streets, a variety of housing forms, and a district energy system, right in the heart of oil country.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

Making sure smart devices can talk to each other and the grid Mar 14, 2025

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In this episode, I talk with Devrim Celal from Kraken about ensuring all our smart home energy devices can actually talk to the grid. We discuss how Mercury will certify devices to create reliability standards, preventing your fancy EV charger or heat pump from becoming useless if a manufacturer disappears while helping utilities manage load growth.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

Who is paying for all that data center power? Mar 12, 2025

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In this episode, Harvard Law's Eliza Martin and Ari Peskoe join me to unpack how data centers' skyrocketing electricity demand could leave ordinary customers subsidizing Big Tech's power bills. Most chilling is the potential alliance between utilities and tech giants that threatens to derail much-needed utility reforms while entrenching fossil-fueled infrastructure.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

Why housing is a pass/fail question for climate Mar 07, 2025

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Why are housing and urban land use so central to climate policy? In this episode, I try to answer the question squarely, in dialogue with Matthew Lewis of California YIMBY. We discuss why EVs alone can't decarbonize transportation fast enough, how the climate-driven insurance crisis will bankrupt states, why the climate movement’s own internal NIMBYs are its greatest impediment, and when green philanthropists and leaders will finally catch up.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

The fate of the EV tax credits Mar 05, 2025

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In this episode, I'm joined by Albert Gore to discuss the fate of the electric-vehicle tax credits under the Trump administration. Gore explains how the consumer credit provides a demand-side signal to complement the supply-side manufacturing credits, and why eliminating either would primarily benefit Chinese manufacturers.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

What the F is happening? Feb 28, 2025

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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.volts.wtf

In this episode, I speak with Canary Media journalists Clare Fieseler and Julian Spector to assess the early impacts of Trump's executive orders on clean energy. We explore what's actually happening with offshore wind projects, manufacturing investments, and tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act.

Pakistan's solar boom Feb 26, 2025

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In this episode, I speak with Mustafa Amjad and Waqas Moosa about Pakistan's extraordinary solar boom -- nearly 30 gigawatts of panels have flooded into the country since 2020! We explore how punishingly high grid electricity prices combined with dramatically cheaper Chinese solar panels have created a bottom-up energy revolution that could become the blueprint for energy transitions worldwide.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

The Massachusetts utility regulator trying to orchestrate a shift away from gas Feb 21, 2025

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In this episode, I'm joined by James Van Nostrand. He is the top utility regulator in Massachusetts, the first state to explicitly tell gas utilities to plan their own phase-out. We explore this complex transition, including the fate of existing gas infrastructure, the potential of networked geothermal as an alternative, and protections for both workers and ratepayers.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

What YIMBYs are learning from their victories across the country Feb 19, 2025

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In this episode I'm joined by Annemarie Gray and Felicity Maxwell to discuss how the YIMBY movement is finally cracking the code on housing reform in major American cities. We examine the recent groundbreaking victories in New York City and Austin, exploring how pro-housing groups are learning from each other through networks like Welcoming Neighbors Network, and wrestle with the challenge of increasing housing supply while protecting existing communities.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

Austin's quest to reach net zero Feb 14, 2025

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At this live event in Austin, Texas, I was joined by Austin Energy executives Lisa Martin and Michael Enger to discuss how a progressive municipal utility charts a course to clean energy in Texas. We explore their multi-pronged approach to reaching 100 percent carbon-free electricity by 2035, from expanding distributed energy resources and battery storage to piloting first-of-its-kind geothermal technology.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.volts.wtf/subscribe

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