Factor This

Factor This
  • 4.9 (36)
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
Factor This

Launched in 2022, the Factor This Podcast has featured many of the most influential leaders driving the energy transition. From solar and battery storage executives to utility CEOs, the Factor This Podcast brings unique insights and answers to the energy industry’s most pressing challenges. Go beyond high-level trends and mainstream talking points with actionable takeaways.    The Factor This Podcast grew in 2023 with the addition of This Week in Cleantech, a weekly roundup of the biggest stories in climate and clean energy in 15 minutes or less. With new episodes every Friday, Factor This content director Paul Gerke and Mike Casey, a cleantech commentator and president of Tigercomm, bring listeners the most important headlines of the week while featuring the leading journalists behind the stories. The all-new FactorThis.com is your best source for news, commentary, and analysis of renewable energy and the power grid. 

  1. 5D AGO

    This Week in Cleantech (07/11/2025) - More handouts for big oil?

    Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey. This week’s episode features special guest Mark Gongloff from Bloomberg, who wrote about how Senate Republicans are proposing nearly $18 billion in new subsidies for fossil-fuel companies over the next decade. This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Mark Jacobs, co-founder of EVmath. Mark led marketing for the DOE-funded EMPOWER Project which helps workplaces install EV chargers for their employees.  This Week in Cleantech — July 11, 2025  Trump’s crackdown on renewable energy has just begun — The Washington PostThe Permitting Crisis for Renewables — Heatmap NewsHow the Trump tax bill could help China win at A.I. — The Washington PostAmerica invents. Others deploy. — Latitude MediaThe GOP Wants to Give Big Oil a Handout It Doesn’t Need — Bloomberg Want to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

    18 min

  2. JUL 7

    This Week in Cleantech (07/07/2025) - How can data centers become more flexible?

    Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey. This week’s episode features special guest Maeve Allsup from Latitude Media, who wrote about how a a new startup allowed an Oracle data center using Nvidia GPUs to cut its power consumption 25% during hours of peak grid demand without sacrificing performance. This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is JoeBen Bevirt, founder of Joby Aviation, a company developing electric air taxis for commercial passenger service. This week, its electric air taxi completed a series of piloted, vertical-takeoff-and-landing wingborne flights in Dubai. Congratulations, JoeBen!  This Week in Cleantech — July 07, 2025  Ford Forced to Idle Multiple US Plants on China Magnet Shortage – BloombergChina's Clean Energy Boom Could Win the Race to Power the Future – New York TimesClimate threat to U.S. infrastructure is accelerating. Here's what's most at risk – CNBCRed States–And AI–Are Big Losers From Trump’s Clean Energy Massacre – ForbesNvidia and Oracle tapped this startup to flex a Phoenix data center – Latitude Media Want to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

    20 min

  3. JUN 27

    This Week in Cleantech (06/27/2025) - Can we meet climate goals without fixing our food?

    Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey. This week’s episode features special guest Michael Grunwald from the Atlantic, who wrote aobut how we won’t meet climate goals without fixing our food system. This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Kakani Katija, creator of the gaming app FathomVerse. This summer, Katija’s team plans to test an AI underwater robot that will search for specific marine species and collect data. The goal is to deploy a fleet of underwater AI-enabled drones constantly monitoring marine animals to gain insight into the ocean’s impact on global climate. This Week in Cleantech — June 27, 2025  The U.S. Gave Up Its Lead in Clean Energy Sectors Before. It Might Be Doing It Again. — The Wall Street JournalBlackouts, Brownouts, and Freaked-Out Grid Operators: The Summer of Load Has Arrived — Heatmap News‘Throwing us off a cliff’: Megabill could derail hundreds of planned clean energy projects — POLITICONew York to Build One of First U.S. Nuclear-Power Plants in Generation — The Wall Street JournalHumanity Can Quit Fossil Fuels—But Not Food — The Atlantic Want to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

    21 min

  4. JUN 25

    Preparing the grid for the climate of tomorrow

    Tell us what you think of the show! Since 2022, the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), a nonprofit, independent research and development group focused on the generation, delivery, and use of electricity, has been developing a framework to help utilities enhance the resilience of their infrastructure. The Climate READi initiative aims to strengthen the power sector’s collective approach to managing climate risk to power systems. On this episode of the Factor This podcast, host Paul Gerke chats with EPRI's Laura Fischer and Andrea Staid about the ongoing initiative, a robust collaboration including insights from more than 40 electric companies, 100 academic, consulting, and finance institutions, as well as national labs, regulators, and government agencies. Want to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

    38 min

  5. JUN 23

    This Week in Cleantech (06/23/2025) - Is Trump crippling climate research?

    Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey. This week’s episode features special guest Scott Waldman from E&E News, who wrote about how the Trump administration is "crippling" the government’s ability to research global warming. This week's "Cleantechers of the Week" are the slain and wounded MN legislators, Rep. Melissa Hortman and Sen. John Hoffman. Rep. Hortman was the key legislative leader who shepherded Minnesota’s landmark climate and clean energy bill in 2023. With the passage of that legislation, Minnesota became the 22nd state in the nation to commit to 100% carbon-free electricity, requiring the state’s investor-owned utilities to be fully carbon-free by 2040. This Week in Cleantech — June 23, 2025 The winners and losers of the Senate's take on the 'One Big Beautiful Bill' – Factor This!The U.S. invested in EV battery plants. Now they may be stranded – The Washington PostEnergy Abundance Won’t Fix Electricity Bills – The AtlanticWhat a pioneering project means for ocean carbon removal – TrellisHow Trump’s assault on science is blinding America to climate change – E&E News Want to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

    20 min

  6. JUN 6

    This Week in Cleantech (06/06/2025) - Trump wants to repurpose Biden's green bank

    Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey. This week’s episode features special guest Ari Natter from Bloomberg, who wrote about how the Trump administration plans to repurpose Biden’s $400 billion green bank to fund loans for nuclear, geothermal, and critical mineral projects This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Mayor Mondale Robinson of Enfield, North Carolina. He led a plan to build a solar farm, resilience hub, and weatherization center in Enfield, cutting $650 monthly energy bills, replacing crumbling grid infrastructure, and using clean energy to bring jobs and economic independence to a historically Black, underserved rural community. This Week in Cleantech — June 6, 2025 The Supreme Court Just Started a Permitting Revolution — HeatmapU.S. Oil Companies Are ‘Battening Down the Hatches’ — The New York TimesWhy Wind And Solar Make Grids More Vulnerable to Blackouts — The Wall Street JournalChinese battery glut plugs into solar boom to power Pakistan — The Financial TimesTrump Plans to Tap Biden’s Green Bank to Make Billions in Loans — Bloomberg Want to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

    16 min

  7. MAY 30

    This Week in Cleantech (05/30/2025) - The solar industry needs a win

    Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey. This week’s episode features special guest Kathiann Kowalski from Canary Media who wrote about how Ohio’s House Bill 1 is seen as a win by the solar industry. This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Adam Hall, who had his 8th grade students give him a “Solar Mohawk” at their Viva el Drágon festival. Students at the festival demonstrated the power of the sun with student-built solar models. Congratulations, Adam! This Week in Cleantech — May 30, 2025 BYD beats Tesla in European EV sales despite EU tariffs in 'watershed moment,' report says — CNBCTrump Tariffs Blocked by U.S. Court of International Trade — The New York TimesTrump policy kick-starts nuclear test reactors in the U.S. — AxiosFate of $20 Billion US Home Solar Market Lies in GOP Senate Hands — BloombergWhy the solar industry is counting Ohio’s newest energy law as a win — Canary Media Want to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

    20 min

  8. MAY 23

    This Week in Cleantech (05/22/2025) - A breakthrough in EV batteries?

    Tell us what you think of the show! This Week in Cleantech is a weekly podcast covering the most impactful stories in clean energy and climate in 15 minutes or less featuring Paul Gerke of Factor This and Tigercomm’s Mike Casey. This week’s episode features special guest Jack Ewing from The New York Times, who wrote about how Massachusetts start-up Factorial Energy, led by Siyu Huang, has successfully tested its solid-state battery in a Mercedes-Benz EQS sedan This week's "Cleantecher of the Week" is Carlo Angeles, of the Biodiversity Credit Alliance who posted about how defaunation is breaking our forests. He shared that there is a 68% decrease in forest regeneration when key dispersers are gone, along with other information that we’ll include in our episode writeup. Congratulations, Carlo! This Week in Cleantech — May 22, 2025  Tax bill passed by House Republicans would gut Biden-era clean energy tax credits –– AP NewsSwiss Clean-Energy Startup Produces Diesel From Solar Power –– The Wall Street JournalTrump orders the government to stop enforcing rules he doesn’t like –– The Washington PostRenewable Energy Is Booming in Texas. Republicans Want to Change That. –– The New York TimesA Decade-Long Search for a Battery That Can End the Gasoline Era –– The New York TimesWant to make a suggestion for This Week in Cleantech? Nominate the stories that caught your eye each week by emailing Paul.Gerke@clarionevents.com

    18 min
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4.9
out of 5
36 Ratings

About

Launched in 2022, the Factor This Podcast has featured many of the most influential leaders driving the energy transition. From solar and battery storage executives to utility CEOs, the Factor This Podcast brings unique insights and answers to the energy industry’s most pressing challenges. Go beyond high-level trends and mainstream talking points with actionable takeaways.    The Factor This Podcast grew in 2023 with the addition of This Week in Cleantech, a weekly roundup of the biggest stories in climate and clean energy in 15 minutes or less. With new episodes every Friday, Factor This content director Paul Gerke and Mike Casey, a cleantech commentator and president of Tigercomm, bring listeners the most important headlines of the week while featuring the leading journalists behind the stories. The all-new FactorThis.com is your best source for news, commentary, and analysis of renewable energy and the power grid. 

Information

  • Creator
    Factor This
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2025
  • Episodes
    176
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025 Factor This
  • Show Website
    Factor This

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