Resources Radio Resources Radio

This week, host Daniel Raimi talks with Daniel Esty, a professor at Yale University and a member of the board of directors at Resources for the Future (RFF). Dan talks about a new book he edited, "A Better Planet: 40 Big Ideas for a Sustainable Future." As its title suggests, the book covers a wide range of topics. Raimi and Esty's conversation focuses on an essay that Esty wrote, which outlines how to design environmental policy in a way that fosters innovation and new technologies. They also touch on the role of finance and politics in shaping environmental outcomes.

References and recommendations:

"A Better Planet: 40 Big Ideas for a Sustainable Future" edited by Daniel C. Esty; https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300246247/better-planet

Hearing on "Building a 100 Percent Clean Economy: Solutions for Economy-Wide Deep Decarbonization" with Daniel C. Esty, Noah Kaufman, David K. Gattie, and Tim Profeta; https://energycommerce.house.gov/committee-activity/hearings/hearing-on-building-a-100-percent-clean-economy-solutions-for-economy

"Decarbonizing Space Heating with Air Source Heat Pumps" by Noah Kaufman, David Sandalow, Clotilde Rossi di Schio, and Jake Higdon; https://energypolicy.columbia.edu/research/report/decarbonizing-space-heating-air-source-heat-pumps

This week, host Daniel Raimi talks with Megan Mullin, an associate professor of environmental politics at Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment. Mullin talks about her research, which analyzes how communities pay to rehabilitate beaches affected by erosion and how differential tax rates can affect levels of support for these beach nourishment projects. Mullin also makes clear why coastal management is relevant: as climate change accelerates the erosion of beaches, and as federal funding dries up, local communities will increasingly have to grapple with how to pay to replenish their shorelines.

References and recommendations:

"Paying to save the beach: effects of local finance decisions on coastal management" by Megan Mullin, Martin D. Smith, and Dylan E. McNamara; https://rd.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10584-018-2191-5

The Conversation, "Where does beach sand come from?" https://theconversation.com/where-does-beach-sand-come-from-126323

"The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance"; https://www.netflix.com/title/80148535

This week, host Daniel Raimi talks with Robert Litterman, a founding partner at Kepos Capital and a board member at Resources for the Future (RFF). Litterman recently was named the chair of a new committee that will be advising US financial regulators on the economic risks of climate change, a new position that leverages Litterman's extensive experience working on risk management in the financial sector and his deep interest in climate change. Raimi and Litterman talk about the scale of the risks to the US financial system from climate change; whether and how markets are currently pricing the risks of climate change for assets like coastal property or energy companies; and the recent paper Litterman coauthored, which takes an unconventional and novel approach to carbon pricing.

References and recommendations:

"Global Warming of 1.5 degrees," an IPCC special report; https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/

"Declining CO2 price paths" by Kent D. Daniel, Robert B. Litterman, and Gernot Wagner; https://www.pnas.org/content/116/42/20886

This week's episode features a review of the year 2019 in environmental and energy policy, with two amazing guests: Susan Tierney, senior advisor at the Analysis Group and chair of the board at Resources for the Future (RFF); and Sarah Ladislaw, senior vice president, director, and senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, with their Energy and National Security Program. Host Daniel Raimi facilitates a conversation with Tierney and Ladislaw, asking what they consider to be the most interesting environmental and energy policy developments during the past year, at the federal and state level. The discussion touches on everything from vehicles to electricity, to interstate natural gas pipelines, and more.

References and recommendations:

"Time to move away from old precedents in FERC pipeline reviews" by Susan Tierney; https://www.utilitydive.com/news/time-to-move-away-from-old-precedents-in-ferc-pipeline-reviews/567512/

"FERC’s Certification of New Interstate Natural Gas Facilities" by Susan Tierney; https://www.analysisgroup.com/globalassets/content/insights/publishing/revising_ferc_1999_pipeline_certification.pdf

"Blowout" by Rachel Maddow; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/576330/blowout-by-rachel-maddow/

"The River" by Peter Heller; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/576820/the-river-by-peter-heller/

"Made in China: 2025 and the Future of American Industry" by Marco Rubio; https://www.rubio.senate.gov/public/_cache/files/d1c6db46-1a68-481a-b96e-356c8100f1b7/3EDECA923DB439A8E884C6229A4C6003.02.12.19-final-sbc-project-mic2025-report.pdf

"Perspectives on the Green New Deal" with Leah Stokes and Jerry Taylor; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMPf9Zf2RSQ

Riders in the Sky; https://www.ridersinthesky.com

This week, host Daniel Raimi talks with Nathaniel Keohane, senior vice president for climate at Environmental Defense Fund. In this episode, Keohane gives a readout on the outcomes of this year’s annual international climate negotiations, called COP25. He and Raimi talk about the goals of the conference; whether those goals were achieved; and several other issues, including conference protests, the role of the US delegation, and what to look forward to at next year’s COP26.

There was so much to talk about that the episode extends about ten minutes beyond the usual length of the podcast. Given the importance and timeliness of this topic, we think you’ll appreciate the extra time.

References and recommendations:

"What to Expect at COP25 in Madrid" by Robert Stavins; https://www.resourcesmag.org/common-resources/what-expect-cop-25-madrid/

"Elliot Diringer on the conclusion of COP25" from the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions; https://www.c2es.org/press-release/elliot-diringer-on-the-conclusion-of-cop-25/

"This Changes Everything" by Naomi Klein; https://thischangeseverything.org/book/

This week, host Daniel Raimi talks with Emily Grubert, an assistant professor at the Georgia Institute of Technology. Raimi and Grubert discuss how water is used in the energy system, a subset of the topic known as the “Energy-Water Nexus.” They also talk about a 2018 paper that Grubert coauthored with Kelly Sanders—research that provides intricate detail on the life cycle of water consumption for every major fuel source in the United States. Raimi and Grubert compare and contrast the different water profiles of coal, oil, gas, biofuels, and other sources of energy. They also talk in detail about water use in hydraulic fracturing.

References and recommendations:

“Water use in the United States energy system: A national assessment and unit process inventory of water consumption and withdrawals” by Emily Grubert and Kelly T. Sanders;
http://emilygrubert.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/PREPRINT-Grubert-Sanders-Water-for-US-Energy.pdf

“Who speaks for Crazy Horse” by Brooke Jarvis; https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2019/09/23/who-speaks-for-crazy-horse

“Gold Fame Citrus” by Claire Vaye Watkins; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/318277/gold-fame-citrus-by-claire-vaye-watkins/9781594634246/

“The Water Knife” by Paolo Bacigalupi; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/237233/the-water-knife-by-paolo-bacigalupi/