Disasterproof

Convective

Conversations with people who are building things that protect the world from disasters. Hosted by Kat Manalac and Bill Clerico.

Episodes

  1. 6d ago

    Can Cloud Seeding Save the Great Salt Lake?

    The Great Salt Lake has lost more than half its surface area since 1850, and the snowpack that's supposed to refill it is disappearing too. This past winter was the worst in at least 50 years, with precipitation increasingly falling as rain instead of snow. In this episode of Disasterproof, we go on the ground with Rainmaker, a company using autonomous drones to seed clouds with silver iodide and coax more snow out of the sky. Rainmaker says it's the first company in history to unambiguously prove it's inducing precipitation, and it's now working with the state of Utah to try to reverse the decline of the Great Salt Lake within the decade. Cloud seeding itself isn't new, the U.S. has been doing it for over 70 years. What's changed is the urgency, and the technology now being used to validate it. We also look at the Aral Sea's cautionary tale, and sit in on Rainmaker's "Save Our Snow" pitch to a room full of investors, skiers, and scientists who all want to know the same thing: can this actually work? Chapters: 00:00 The Great Salt Lake's Vanishing Act 01:54 On the Ground With a Snow Scientist 04:04 70 Years of Cloud Seeding, Reinvented 05:55 Inside Rainmaker's Operations Center 07:16 How Silver Iodide Seeds a Cloud 08:32 A Live Flight Over a Cow Field 09:43 Proving the Precipitation Is Real 10:30 The Aral Sea's Warning 11:40 Project Save Our Snow 12:32 Q&A: Funding, Ethics, and Skepticism 14:38 Fact vs. Fear on Cloud Seeding

  2. Jul 9

    Why a rocket guy went to Washington

    George Whitesides has spent his career on systems-level problems: NASA chief of staff, Virgin Galactic CEO, co-founder of Megafire Action, and now the U.S. Congressman representing one of California's most fire-prone districts. In this episode of Disasterproof, we sit down with Whitesides near the site of the Sandy Fire to talk about what it actually takes to fix the wildfire crisis, from the five systems working against each other, to the "valley of death" stalling wildfire startups, to two bills moving through Congress right now. He also gets personal about evacuating his own home during the January 2025 fires.   Chapters 00:00 The cost of wildfires 00:34 Introducing George Whitesides 03:15 The wins that keep you inspired06:00 Why wildfire is "existential" for California 09:06 The five systems behind every wildfire 11:42 The one disaster we can get ahead of 12:28 Why new tech moves so slowly through government 14:19 What NASA taught him about build vs. buy 18:30 The "valley of death" for wildfire startups 19:38 A trillion-dollar problem, a broken budget 21:50 Inside the Acero Act and Fix Our Forests Act 26:00 Pitching a wildfire tech fund 27:50 What it's like to watch your district burn

  3. Jun 22

    What Stopped the Sandy Fire? A Resilience Case Study

    In late May, the Sandy Fire broke out on a hot, windy afternoon in Simi Valley, California and grew to more than 2,000 acres and forced over 10,000 evacuations. When it was over, only one home had been lost. California Congressman George Whitesides calls wildfire existential for the state, the defining risk of an era increasingly shaped by fire. The Sandy Fire is exactly the kind of threat he means. In this episode of Disasterproof, we go on the ground with Whitesides and the Ventura County Fire Department to understand how. The answer is a layered one. Strict 100-foot defensible space requirements bought firefighters room to work. Remote sensing aircraft and satellite heat detection told them where the fire was moving. And when the wind reversed in the afternoon, air tankers and hand crews held the line on steep, dangerous terrain. The Sandy Fire shows what is possible when preparation and fast response come together. Chapters: 00:00 A Brush Fire off Sandy Avenue 00:58 Why Wildfire Is "Existential" for California 01:58 The First 30 Minutes of the Fire03:17 Defensible Space and the Tech Behind the Response04:18 On the Fire Line 06:05 The Case for More Fire 07:25 Still Playing Catch-Up

  4. May 14

    What we learned about resilience from Y Combinator

    What does it take to build something that survives? In episode one of the Disasterproof Podcast, hosts Kat Mañalac and Bill Clerico sat down with Y Combinator co-founders Paul Graham and Jessica Livingston to find out. From the 2008 financial crash to COVID-19 to the current AI moment, Paul and Jessica share how YC has weathered uncertainty, why they look for "cockroaches" in their portfolio, and how the founders who thrive are the ones who learn to get stronger from the chaos. "There's always some kind of disaster going on. It's almost a rule of thumb at Y Combinator — just like in a hospital, there's always somebody who's coding." - Paul Graham. "Adaptability is a really key trait to have always as a founder, but especially in these sort of unknown times when you don't know what the future holds" - Jessica Livingston. Thanks to our partners the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. Chapters 00:00 Welcome to Disasterproof 01:35 How to be an expert in a changing world06:35 Building resilient companies: what YC looks for 16:00 What keeps YC resilient after 20+ years 24:03 Bill's wildfire origin story 27:45 Climate investing and the hard tech opportunity35:38 Guilt vs. greed39:55 Personal resilience and sticking to your North Star 47:00 Are you a prepper? 48:10 What do you hope for in the next 10 years? 51:32 What keeps you up at night? AI and climate change Disasterproof Hosts: Kat Manalac and Bill Clerico Co-Directors: Maya Craig & Nick Stone Schearer Camera Operator: Isara Krieger Sound Mixer: Myriam Boisselle Editor: Nick Stone Schearer

  5. Apr 14

    Is This the Future of Fighting Wildfires?

    In wildfire response, speed is everything. By the time firefighters reach many fire starts, the fire is already too large to easily contain. In 2018, the Camp Fire showed how quickly a small ignition can turn into a catastrophic disaster—destroying an entire town in less than a day. That is why many fire experts believe the most important window is the first few minutes after a fire is detected. In this episode of Disasterproof, we visit Seneca and its founder Stuart Landesberg to see how autonomous firefighting aircraft could change that. Their drones are designed to launch quickly, find fires on their own, and suppress them before they spread. At the test range, we watch the system in action—and explore a future where fleets of autonomous aircraft help protect communities from wildfire. Subscribe for new episodes:  disasterproof.com  Chapters 00:00 A first flight for a wildfire drone 01:08 The lesson of the Camp Fire 01:30 Why the first 10 minutes matter 03:10 Inside Seneca’s new firefighting aircraft 04:28 Preparing for the live fire test 05:01 How the aircraft suppresses fire 06:03 The autonomous flight test 07:12 Nature's sprinkler system 09:06 Seneca’s vision for wildfire response 10:43 A future of autonomous fire protection Disasterproof Hosts: Kat Manalac and Bill Clerico Director/Producer: Zach Both Cinematographer: Matt Piniol Assistant Camera: Colt Bradley Editors: Josh and Amanda Deisler Motion Graphics: Jules Verardi

    Is This the Future of Fighting Wildfires?

  6. Mar 17

    How to Fight Fire with Fire

    Wildfires are putting more towns and critical infrastructure at risk every year. In 2024, the largest wildfire in Texas history spread rapidly toward the town of Borger until it reached the edge of town and just… stopped. The town was spared because months earlier the Borger Fire Department had deliberately set fire to the land surrounding the town. This is called prescribed burning, an ancient land management practice designed to remove the vegetation that fuels catastrophic wildfires. Today, the challenge is safely doing prescribed burning at the scale needed to protect modern landscapes. Luckily, there are people working to provide a modern solution to this problem. In our first episode of Disasterproof, we visit BurnBot’s headquarters to meet CEO Anukool Lakhina and see the machines designed to make prescribed fire faster, safer, and more scalable. We also sit down with Archie Stone, the Wildland Fire Coordinator who advocated for the prescribed burns that ended up saving the town of Borger. Together, they make the case that the best way to fight fire is with fire. Subscribe for new episodes: https://www.youtube.com/@disasterproofhq?sub_confirmation=1 Disasterproof Hosts: Kat Manalac and Bill Clerico Director/Producer: Zach Both Cinematographer: Matt Piniol Assistant Camera: Matt Breetzke Editors: Josh and Amanda Deisler Motion Graphics: Jules Verardi

  • 6 Episodes

About

Conversations with people who are building things that protect the world from disasters. Hosted by Kat Manalac and Bill Clerico.

Information

  • Creator
    Convective
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    6
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Convective
  • Show Website
    Disasterproof