Podcast appearances and mentions of Saul Griffith

On this week's episode of the Unnatural Selection Podcast, we discuss: How Peter Dutton's Wile E Coyote campaign flew off the cliff. Federal politics: Mark Dreyfus and Ed Husic dumped from Labor frontbench in factional carve-up. Nobody Asked For This - Jorge's Substack. Voters Didn't Reject Dutton Because of His Division, They Rejected His Chaos. The Perfect Storm: How Labor's Election Victory Turned into a Deluge. Jacinta Price drops post-election bombshell as she defects to the Liberal Party. Federal politics: Matt Canavan to challenge David Littleproud for the National Party leadership. Not just Alcatraz: the notorious US prisons Trump is already reopening. Can't Have A Police State Without Unaccountable Police. India claims targets in Pakistan were 'terrorist infrastructure'. Power is back on in Spain and Portugal, but questions remain about Monday's blackout. Here's what we know. Rewiring Australia founder Saul Griffith is a man on a mission to electrify the nation, one suburb at a time. Who is Robert Prevost, the new Pope Leo XIV? The Unnatural Selection podcast is produced by Jorge Tsipos, Adam Direen and Tom Heath. Visit the Unnatural Selection website at www.UnnaturalShow.com for stuff and things. The views expressed are those of the hosts and their guests and do not reflect those of any other entities. Unnatural Selection is a show made for comedic purposes and should not be taken seriously by anyone. Twitter: @JorgeTsipos @TomDHeath @UnnaturalShow Instagram: @JorgeTsipos @Tom.Heath @UnnaturalShow  

In a coastal corner of Australia, scientist Saul Griffith has been quietly working away on a plan to turn 500 households completely off fossil fuels. He hopes that what he achieves there can act as a blueprint for the rest of the country. But for that to become a reality, the federal government would need to drastically increase their commitment to renewable energy. Today, chief scientist at Rewiring Australia, Saul Griffith, on the electrification already underway – and what both sides of politics are promising for our energy future. If you enjoy 7am, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at 7ampodcast.com.au/support. Socials: Stay in touch with us on Instagram Guest: Chief scientist at Rewiring Australia Saul Griffith Photo:See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of the Fully Charged Show Podcast, Robert Llewellyn is joined by Saul Griffith—engineer, inventor, and founder of Rewiring America & Rewiring Australia—for a lively and insightful deep dive into the future of electrification.    Between a healthy dose of teasing Robert, Saul lays out why electrifying everything is the fastest, most effective way to slash emissions and energy costs. They explore why Australia is primed to lead the renewable energy revolution, how China is racing ahead, and what the US and Europe must do to keep up.    They also tackle the big fights ahead—from outdated regulations to fossil fuel resistance—and discuss what's really holding back the EV boom and how smart policies could change everything.    Saul's knowledge is immense, his insights eye-opening, and his delivery? Well, he certainly put Robert through his paces for your entertainment! Enjoy!

When it comes to getting solar panels, the cost can seem pretty daunting for the average household.

When it comes to getting solar panels, the cost can seem pretty daunting for the average household.

When it comes to getting solar panels, the cost can seem pretty daunting for the average household.

If you're a climate-conscious person, you likely already know some of the main ways you can reduce your contribution to greenhouse gasses: buy less, eat less meat, ride your bike. But there are other, less obvious methods we don't always think of: voting, having climate conversations, engaging with your local government, changing where your money is invested. And while our role as individuals does matter, we're more powerful when we work together in collective action. Guests:  Jon Foley, Executive Director, Project Drawdown Eliza Nemser, Executive Director, Climate Changemakers This episode also features excerpts from Cory Booker, Anna Lappé, Frances Moore Lappé, Saul Griffith, Monique Figueiredo, Jonathan Chapman, Jennifer Anderson, Tanya Gulliver Garcia, Vernon Walker, Abrar Anwar, Slater Jewell-Kemker, Kyle Gracey and Alec Loorz.

If you're a climate-conscious person, you likely already know some of the main ways you can reduce your contribution to greenhouse gasses: buy less, eat less meat, ride your bike. But there are other, less obvious methods we don't always think of: voting, having climate conversations, engaging with your local government, changing where your money is invested. And while our role as individuals does matter, we're more powerful when we work together in collective action.  Guests:  Jon Foley, Executive Director, Project Drawdown Eliza Nemser, Executive Director, Climate Changemakers This episode also features excerpts from Cory Booker, Anna Lappé, Frances Moore Lappé, Saul Griffith, Monique Figueiredo, Jonathan Chapman, Jennifer Anderson, Tanya Gulliver Garcia, Vernon Walker, Abrar Anwar, Slater Jewell-Kemker, Kyle Gracey and Alec Loorz.

Arjun Jairaj is an investor at noa, a London-based VC firm focused on early-stage ventures in the built environment across North America and Europe. With experience spanning private equity, startup founding, and advisory roles, Arjun has worked in India, the UK, and beyond, including founding a shared economy startup called Plonk. At noa, he focuses on real estate, construction, energy, and mobility, with a strong emphasis on sustainability and climate technology. In this episode, Arjun shares insights on:Navigating regional investment differencesThe impact of political landscapes on climate techEmerging opportunities in robotics and decentralized energy systems.

On Q&A Labour leader Chris Hipkins said it's time for New Zealand to have an "honest" conversation about the levels of taxation and Government debt needed to afford the things we want as a country. Former gun lobbyist Nicole McKee has used her power as a Government minister to reduce regulation for gun clubs — without any public consultation. Documents obtained by 1News show officials raised the alarm about a change to the Arms Regulations in May, saying they were being processed under a "short time frame". The average New Zealand household could save nearly $1500 a year by installing rooftop solar and batteries, and switching out gas and fuel for electric appliances and cars, according to a high-powered report by Renewable energy advocate Saul Griffith that finds New Zealand overall can save $95 billion by 2040 if it electrifies its economy and moves away from fossil fuels. Piers Morgan again invites on the wrong person who smashes apart the Pro-Trump framing that Morgan set up with all his guests. Tim Miller from the Bulwark podcast explained to Morgan why his previous guest, Trump sycophant Corey Lewandowski, was wrong and challenged Piers about having no pushback to Lewandowski but this is not new for Morgan.==================================Come support the work we're doing by becoming a Patron of ⁠⁠#BHN⁠⁠ www.patreon.com/BigHairyNews⁠Merch available at www.BHNShop.nz Like us on Facebookwww.facebook.com/BigHairyNews Follow us on Twitter.@patbrittenden @Chewie_NZ

Labour leader Chris Hipkins says NZ needs to have an "honest" conversation about the levels of debt and taxation needed to afford everything that it wants. Q+A also speaks to renewable energy advocate Saul Griffith, Transport Minister Simeon Brown, and rheumatic fever researcher Jason Gurney.

Saul Griffith is a visionary engineer, scientist, author, and inventor with a plan to fight climate change. The Rewiring Australia founder says the key to urgently reducing Australia's emissions is by turning everything electric — from our homes to our cars, and entire suburbs — and embracing renewable energy.We speak to Saul in this episode about how Australia could successfully get off fossil fuels and save the average household money. Read the article featuring the highlights from this episode here, and follow Saul's personal Instagram here. Plus, find out more about his project Electrify 2515 here.Follow us at @thedesignfiles or subscribe to our weekly newsletter so you don't miss a thing.This episode of TDF talks is brought to you by Momentum Energy.

Saul Griffith helped change the world a couple of years ago when he and a couple of "tech bro" mates convinced Joe Biden to rewrite the Democrats' Green New Deal and pitch it as an Inflation Reduction Act to rewire America's economy with renewable energy. Saul makes a pitch for Aotearoa to do the same, but much cheaper and much faster, instead of the government's current plan to spend $1 billion importing gas over the next couple of years. He presents Rewiring Aotearoa's paper on The Electrification Opportunity, which estimates cheaper power costs worth $10.7 billion per year by 2040. https://www.rewiring.nz/tomorrow Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Professor Clive Hamilton (public ethicist; climate activist; founder of the Australia Institute) has led the emissions reduction conversation for decades. But he - controversially - has recently switched tack, arguing that climate mitigation is now impossible. And irresponsible. And that we must instead put our efforts (and last resources) into trying to survive as best we can. In this chat the professor of public ethics at Charles Sturt University in Canberra, recently named a 'living legend' among Australian scholars, talks through the research published in his latest book Living Hot: Surviving and Thriving on a Heating Planet. We cover why Saul Griffith's “electrify everything” campaign is flawed, the safest place to live and what we should now be fighting for, and we discuss the contentious issue of class and the dangerous role of private schools (strange but true) to our survival. Clive's previous Zeitgeist-shifting books include Requiem for a Species, Growth Fetish and Affluenza. SHOW NOTESYou can get hold of Living Hot and The Privileged FewYou can read my Book Serialisation on Substack here. Here are the first two chapters, free to everyone.You can listen to my Wild conversation with Saul Griffiths here.My wonderful chat with Olivia Lazard on mineral depletion is a great backgrounder, too.--If you need to know a bit more about me… head to my "about" pageFor more such conversations subscribe to my Substack newsletter, it's where I interact the most!Get your copy of my book, This One Wild and Precious LifeLet's connect on Instagram and WeAre8 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In today's episode we're joined by voice actor Sarah Aubrey to discuss her online advocacy of renewable energy and sustainable living. Throughout our conversation, Sarah shares insights into various aspects of renewable energy, including electric cars, household energy efficiency, and the influence of fossil fuel industries. The Journey to Advocacy:Sarah's journey into the world of sustainability began with a fascination with electric cars, leading her to become an admin of one of Australia's largest Facebook groups on electric vehicles. Her interest in sustainable technology was further fueled by Saul Griffith's "The Big Switch," which emphasised the impact of electrifying homes. She shares the process of transforming it from a 2.9-star energy guzzler to a 10-star haven, drastically reducing her energy bills and improving living conditions. Eventually, Sarah decided to harness her skills in communication to share what she was learning online through her account @electrify_this. Confronting Misinformation and TrollsIt didn't take long for Sarah's social media account to get the attention of fossil fuel trolls. Rather than letting them bully her into silence, Sarah uses these comments as an opportunity to correct the misinformation which helped increase her following and spread her message further.We also discuss the prevalence of misinformation in traditional media and the role it plays in shaping public perceptions. Sarah exposes the deceptive tactics employed by fossil fuel companies to manipulate consumer behavior and underscores the importance of critical thinking in evaluating environmental messaging.Practical Tips for Renewable LivingSarah shares practical advice for both homeowners and renters looking to adopt more sustainable practices. If you're trying to keep warm, ditch the aircon/blow heater and grab a heated throw or radiator. If you're trying to keep cool, get air flowing through your house to maximise the effect from your fan. If you have to use the air con, opt for the humidity-fighting dry mode. Most of all Sarah advocates progress rather than perfection and highlights the importance of sustained effort in tackling climate change. If you can't give up your car entirely, it's still worth taking a bike when possible. If you don't want to give up meat or animal products, simply reducing the amount you consume or choosing less harmful types, can be hugely positive for the environment. Remember, every step towards sustainability counts!Despite the challenges, Sarah remains optimistic about the future of sustainable living. She highlights the growing momentum towards sustainability and the importance of continued advocacy and education. We hope Sarah's vision for a brighter future leaves you feeling inspired to take on the challenges ahead. LINKS:Sanctum Homes: www.yoursanctum.com.au/Carland Constructions: www.carlandconstructions.com/

Heat pumps are proving as one method to combat climate change and decarbonize Canada—because they can operate at 300% efficiency (or greater!), while a standard furnace runs between 93–94%. In this episode of thinkenergy, Hydro Ottawa's Shawn Carr, Manager, Customer Experience, chats his experience using a heat pump in his home. From the upfront costs to how it works and its role in reducing carbon emissions. Listen in for practical benefits of heat pumps and their future in our homes and businesses. Related links   ●       Shawn Carr, LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawn-carr-6797b612/ ●       Air Source Heat Pump Toolkit: https://natural-resources.canada.ca/maps-tools-and-publications/tools/modelling-tools/toolkit-for-air-source-heat-pump-sizing-and-selection/23558 ●       Building Decarbonization Alliance heat pump report: https://buildingdecarbonization.ca/report/the-cool-way-to-heat-homesinstalling-heat-pumps-instead-of-central-air-conditioners-in-canada/ ●       Trevor Freeman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevor-freeman-p-eng-cem-leed-ap-8b612114/ ●       Hydro Ottawa: https://hydroottawa.com/en    To subscribe using Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/thinkenergy/id1465129405   To subscribe using Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7wFz7rdR8Gq3f2WOafjxpl   To subscribe on Libsyn: http://thinkenergy.libsyn.com/ --- Subscribe so you don't miss a video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/hydroottawalimited   Follow along on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hydroottawa   Stay in the know on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HydroOttawa   Keep up with the posts on X: https://twitter.com/thinkenergypod   Transcript: HYDRO_16749_ThinkEnergy_Podcast_May_13_Audio_Final Fri, May 10, 2024 12:03PM • 37:12 SUMMARY KEYWORDS heat pump, electrification, heat, air conditioner, electrify, technology, energy, people, backup, costs, emissions, work, trevor, installed, cold climate, project, ottawa, gas furnace, temperature, ev SPEAKERS Shawn Carr, Trevor Freeman   Trevor Freeman  00:07 Hi, welcome to think energy, a podcast that dives into the fast changing world of energy through conversations with industry leaders, innovators and people on the frontlines of the energy transition. Join me Trevor Freeman as I explore the traditional, unconventional and even up and coming facets of the energy industry. If you've got thoughts, feedback or ideas for topics that we should cover, we'd love to hear from you. Please reach out to us, at thinkenergy@hydro ottawa.com Hi everyone, welcome back. On today's show, we're going to do something a little bit different. We're going to check back in with a previous guests. Just over a year ago, Dan, my predecessor in the host chair, interviewed Sean Carr hydro Ottawa's manager of customer experience about residential heat pumps, and in particular about his own experience with a heat pump installation for his own home. At the time, his heat pump was only about five months old. So now that he's been through another full winter with his heat pump, I thought it would be good to check back in and see how things are going. But before we do that, let me give a quick refresher on heat pumps. Now for those of you energy nerds or people in the sector, you may not need a refresher. But even those of you who aren't too sure what a heat pump is, are probably familiar with the technology. A heat pump is just a device that moves heat from one place to another. The most common example of this that you would be familiar with is a home air conditioner or a refrigerator. Both of those devices take heat, either from the air in your home or from the inside of your refrigerator and move it elsewhere. So over an air conditioner and moves the heat outside and for a refrigerator and moves the heat to the back of the refrigerator onto those coils that gather dust in you might every five years clean off. And they do this in order to make that space colder. A heat pump does exactly the same thing, except it takes heat from the outside air and moves it inside your home in order to make your home warmer. Heat pumps even look a lot like air conditioners, depending on the model. If you walk down the side of my house right now, you wouldn't even know that I have a heat pump. And not just an air conditioner because it looks exactly the same. Now you're probably thinking that's great, except when I want to heat my home, it's typically a cold day in the winter, and there is no heat in the air. But that's not exactly true, there is still some heat energy in the air. And thanks to the wonders of science, a heat pump can extract that heat from the air and move it into your home in the same way that when it's 35 degrees outside. And that's celsius for any nonmetric listeners out there. An air conditioner or heat pump can cool your home. I won't get into all the technical details here. But let's just say if you're not familiar with the ideal gas law, it is doing all the heavy lifting here. And I typically try to make this show not to engineering me but every once in a while I have to throw out a great formula like that. Okay, so now that we remember the basics about what a heat pump is, the next question is why are we talking about them again on the show? Well, if that's what you're thinking, I hate to say it, but this won't be the last time we talk about heat pumps either. In fact, this is the kind of thing that we'll probably revisit a number of times in the future. And that's because heat pumps are such an important technology for decarbonizing the way we heat our buildings, especially residential buildings, and even our water because yes, there are heat pump hot water heaters out there as well. Heat pumps don't use any fuel to create heat, they don't burn anything to create heat, they simply use electricity to move heat. And that makes him super clean. So there are no emissions at all from a heat pump itself, just the emissions that might have been created where that electricity was generated. And they are super efficient. You might have heard people talk about how furnaces are, you know, 93, or 94% efficient, or sometimes even 95, or 96% efficient. So that means for every unit of energy you put into that furnace, you get about, you know, 93 94, or whatever percent of that energy out as heat, you have to put more energy in, then you get out. Heat pumps, on the other hand, use a different scale, something called the coefficient of performance or COP. But it's essentially the same thing. And they can often run around 300% efficiency, and sometimes even higher. So for every unit of energy you're putting in, you get three units of energy out, which is awesome, you're getting more energy out than you're putting in that makes them really efficient. And if we're going to actually tackle the problems that lead to climate change, if we're actually going to decarbonize our society, and I really believe we are because I'm optimistic that way. Then almost every single one of us will eventually have a heat pump heating the space we live in, likely the space we work in as well and heating the water that we use as hot water. Okay, so now that we're back up to speed on heat pumps, let's check in with Shawn to hear how his journey has been going. Sean, welcome to the show.    Shawn Carr  05:12 Thanks, Trevor. It's great to be here.    Trevor Freeman  05:15 Okay, so let's get into it. Let's talk about your experience with a heat pump. Remind us again, what kind of heating system you had in your house and replaced and what did you put in?    Shawn Carr  05:25 Sure, Trevor. So I went from a high efficiency condensing gas furnace to a cold climate heat pump. And I elected to go with electric heat as my backup heat source. And a backup heat source is typically required in our cold climate. And the two most common backup heat options are typically a natural gas furnace, or an electric resistance coil that goes inside your ductwork. So I went with the electric electric resistance coil option.    Trevor Freeman  06:02 Okay, so you totally removed gas from your heating solutions in your house. And for context, can you remind us what is the size of your home and talk us through the economics of your heat pump? What did it cost you? And what remains? What did you qualify for.   Shawn Carr  06:19 So I live in rural Ottawa, our home is approximately 2100 square feet. It's a single storey bungalow, but does have a basement. It was built in 2008. And we were the first homeowners. And so it's relatively modern construction, given that it's only about 15 years old now. In regards to the project costs. So looking back at things, our total project costs for the cold climate heat pump, along with that electric backup system, and I elected to go with some additional controls and bells and whistles. And the project ended up costing us around $17,000, before taxes and rebates. And so maybe just to talk through the rebates a little bit I did receive a $5,000 rebate through enter cans greener Homes program. And I took advantage of a zero interest loan through the greener homes loan program as well, which allows me to pay back that project cost over a 10 year period. With zero interest. Unfortunately, the Enter Ken greener Homes program is no longer accepting applications, it's been pretty successful. But I was obviously fortunate enough to be able to take advantage of that program. So that ended up bringing our total project costs down for the heat pump and backup system to around $12,000. Before Tax, I can say that I do know a handful of people that have gone through and installed heat pumps recently. And I am seeing that the project costs are actually coming down, which is great. My father is actually having a heat pump installed today. In fact, so I'm looking forward to hearing how that project goes. But it's great to see that more installers and companies are now starting to talk to customers about heat pumps. And that's going to make the transition become more feasible than ever for more people. And I do think that being said, if we do want to get to a point where there is mass market adoption, we do need to get the heat pump and backup heat system costs down to a point where they are comparable to a furnace air conditioner replacement project, for example, because people still think in terms of sticker price. And so I do think there's still a bit of work to be done here. But as installers get more comfortable with these heat pumps and manufacturing starts to scale up, I do think we'll see prices come down further.    Trevor Freeman  08:52 Yeah, I mean, it's great to see that we're already seeing movement on that. But as you know, I mean, you and I both fall into that early adopter category and things tend to be more expensive and it will be great when we can get those costs down. So you've been living with your heat pump for over a year now kind of two two winters to cooling or heating season. Sorry. Let's talk about your initial thoughts. Let's start with comfort. How has your comfort been in your home?   Shawn Carr  09:20 Yeah, that's I mean, that's a great place to start. And you know, I will say that we've actually we've noticed some comfort improvements since putting in the cold climate heat pump particularly in our basement actually because we always found that the basement was several degrees colder than it was upstairs the thermostat in our house is on the main floor obviously but since we've gotten the the heat pump installed, we've noticed that the temperature difference between upstairs and downstairs it's actually much smaller. The Delta is much smaller now than it was prior to the heat pump when we were heating with a gas furnace and I think the main reason for that is heat pumps are really designed to run low and slow, they provide a greater volume of air over a longer period of time that that air is being delivered at a lower temperature. But as a result of that we found a more uniform temperature throughout the house just because of how the heat pump was running so much more frequently.   Trevor Freeman  10:22 Great. What about the experience of actually getting installed? I mean, once you made your decision to do this, how was it working with the contractors and getting it installed?   Shawn Carr  10:32 It actually went pretty smoothly. I mean, first of all, we used a contractor that had experience with heat pumps and came recommended. So I think, you know, my advice to anyone who's considering getting one is, you know, get a few quotes, make sure they have experience with heat pumps and electrification or, and are actually recommending this technology. In our case, the total install took about two and a half days. So that includes obviously all the electrical work and running new refrigerant lines to the outside of the house replacing taking the old furnace out and putting the air handler in and installing the backup heat, I think just in terms of space, like the construction footprint essentially was about the same as it was before. So it didn't require more space in our utility room. Basically, we just went from a gas furnace to having a big box that looked very much the same in the same location. And of course, the unit outside looks and sounds very much like a traditional air conditioner. And that's because a heat pump is simply an air conditioner with a reversing valve. So the install was straightforward. Yeah, I would recommend it to anyone.    Trevor Freeman  11:37 Great. Now,I mean, it's interesting, you talk about it being like an air conditioner. We often think about heat pumps as this technology of the future, this thing that we're all eventually going to have in our homes. Is it this futuristic piece of technology that's hard to operate? Or what is it like kind of, you know, setting it and letting it run?    Shawn Carr  11:54 Yeah, so the operation is really straightforward. I think the best way I would describe it is you basically, it's a set and forget system, I think the one thing that we did learn about having a heat pump is we don't adjust the temperature, like the thermostat temperature settings, as much as we did before, when we had a gas furnace, I used to get in the habit of dropping the temperature several degrees overnight, and then having the setpoint higher in the morning prior to getting up. But what we've found is, in particular, with the heat pump, it takes a lot longer for that heat pump, and it has to run a lot longer and a lot harder to reach that temperature setpoint. Again, so in the morning, so what we found is the most comfortable approach was really just to pick a temperature that we were comfortable with and just let it do its thing. The one other thing I think that I will say is I you know, we did have a smart thermostat before we elected to go with a heat pump. And as a result of going with the heat pump, I actually had to use a proprietary Fujitsu thermostat because I had a Fujitsu system. So I lost maybe a little bit of the flexibility that I had with the previous smart thermostat where I could just talk to Alexa or Google and have it adjust the temperature. That way I don't have that flexibility anymore, but because we've really sort of set the temperature and we just forget it and we leave the setpoint pretty much the same all the time, 24/7 I haven't necessarily missed having that technology. And it's not to say that with all heat pumps, you're going to have to use a proprietary thermostat, many of them are compatible with the smart thermostats that are out there that just happened to be the case with the system that I elected to go with.    Trevor Freeman  13:43 Okay, so speaking of temperature, you know, you and I both live in Ottawa, it gets pretty cold. How did it run through the past two winters that you've had it?    Shawn Carr  13:53 Yeah. So this winter, which I think was considered to be, you know, a milder winter on record here in the City of Ottawa, where we live, I'm very happy to report that my backup heat actually never came on. So I was able to just rely on the heat pump and the heat pump only as our only source of heating for our home this past winter. And so it did have a look, and I think we never did get below minus 20 Celsius here in Ottawa this winter, though, I think the coldest day was around, minus 19. But even at those low temperatures, I did not require my backup heat to supplement the heat for our home. I did go back and look at the previous winter, which I know was much colder and I fortunately put some controls on the heat pump that sort of tells me when's the heat pump running, when's the backup heat running, how much electricity is it using and so on. So I did go back and look at all that data and the prior winter. The backup heat only came on five days throughout the entire winter and those were days where the temperature overnight dropped somewhere between minus 17 Celsius and minus 33 Celsius. So those are really cold nights. And looking back, I think, on those days, the heat pump required the backup heat to kick in, and it would probably run for a couple of days, a couple of hours, sorry, on each of those five days. So you know, when the backup heat is running, my energy costs are obviously higher on those days. But I'm very, you know, pleased to report that over two winters, the cold climate heat pump overall has really done the job. And I haven't really had to rely on the backup heat that much.   Trevor Freeman  15:36 What about the noise levels of the unit? Is it a noisy unit to run? Or what does it sound like?    Shawn Carr  15:42 No, I mean, if you're used to having an air conditioner, I would say that the noise levels have been comparable to what they were with my previous air conditioning system. So I don't think you will notice the difference.    Trevor Freeman  15:54 Great. So if you could kind of sum it up, you know, what's the biggest benefit to putting in the heat pump?    Shawn Carr  16:00 What have you noticed? Well, for me, I think I'd say the biggest benefit is high efficiency, low emissions heating. So reducing emissions was my main driver for moving forward with this project. So the environmental benefits are, you know, really what motivated me to move to a heat pump in the first place. And what I'll say is I've also seen some energy savings as well. So it really has been a win-win project for me and I and I imagine that that will be the same for others who are, you know, on the fence as to whether this is the right technology for them or not.   Trevor Freeman  16:36 Yeah, so you talked about the upfront costs of the heat pump, but something that does, you know, concern some people or that people have questions about is, what is this going to cost me to run? So tell us about what your utility costs have been since switching from natural gas heating over to your heat pump?    Shawn Carr  16:56 Yeah, sure. So I'm a bit of a data nerd. So I've been obviously, you know, tracking all my monthly electricity use and gas use and have been keeping track of our overall energy costs. And so I did go back and looked at our energy costs for the two years prior to the heat pump install, and then looked at our energy costs for the 15 months after I put in the heat pump, which did include two winters, as you mentioned earlier, so my total electricity consumption increased by 62%, over that 15 month period, on average after installing the heat pump, but my gas consumption actually decreased by 65%. And my total energy costs actually dropped by 7%. So I've actually seen cost savings since proceeding with the project. And the other thing I'll just share with your listeners, is I elected to maintain my gas connection. And if I had not done that, the savings would have been obviously even greater.   Trevor Freeman  18:03 Yeah, that's great to hear. Any big lessons learned from going through this process and from your first year, first two years rather, of living with it?    Shawn Carr  18:12 Well, I think in our situation in my project, because I elected to go with electric resistance heating is my backup source, I'd say the one lesson learned is just make sure you understand the control strategy for the backup heat, make sure that your contractor explains to you how they've set that up and how that is, is intended to work. And the reason I say that is like I had picked up on the fact a few months after the project was done that there was backup heat that didn't seem to be operating quite right. And it turns out, I had the contractor come back and do a bit more commissioning. And we ended up putting a temperature sensor in the wrong location in the ductwork. And that had, that had caused some trouble, but it got, you got to identify quickly, it got resolved quickly. And I haven't had any issues ever since the contractor I worked with was very responsive, and they've been really great to work with. So that always helps.    Trevor Freeman  19:07 Great. So I mean, we've heard that this is generally a good experience for you. You're happy with where you're at now you're happy with your comfort and your costs. But we know that there isn't mass adoption of heat pumps yet, and we need to move faster if we're going to meet our climate targets. So what do you think is preventing that mass adoption today of heat pump technology?    Shawn Carr  19:30 Yeah, so I think there's a few things to consider. First thing I would probably say is just low familiarity in general, about heat pumps amongst both customers and contractors, but I think that's starting to get better. I think, you know, Heat pumps are getting a lot of attention right now and in the media and so on. And so I think that's certainly going to help create more awareness. But I think in general, you know, homeowners don't necessarily think about, you know, HVAC technology in general, I mean, we tend to be more aware of when a new car model comes out into the market. But that's not necessarily the same when we're talking about technologies like heat pumps. So that's the first thing I'd say just low familiarity still, in general, the other thing I'd say is just HVAC is not necessarily top of mind for most people, furnaces and air conditioners typically last 15 years. And you don't want to wait until a system failure to explore other options because the right option might not be there for you in an emergency replacement situation. So because we don't have to worry about our Hvac equipment very often, you know, infrequent purchasing and just very little time to make prudent HVAC purchasing decisions are barriers, because you might not be able to find the heat pump that you want, or the heat pump that's right for your home in stock if you don't plan ahead for that project. So that's the second thing. And then the third thing I'd still say is, you know, is cost and although basic single stage Heat pumps are becoming more comparable in costs to air conditioners, for example, cold climate, heat pumps still carry a bigger cost premium. And so without an incentive to offset that increase in costs, there's still going to be the risk of sticker shock for many people.    Trevor Freeman  21:20 Yeah. For those challenges for those things that are standing in the way of more Canadians and more people installing heat pumps, what do you think needs to happen? And either with technology or industry knowledge? Are there policy solutions that can be put in place in order to help more people overcome those challenges?   Shawn Carr  21:43 Yeah, I mean, I have a couple of thoughts on that, I guess, you know, for one, you know, what, what if every new air conditioner were a heat pump instead? I think that's something I think we should all think about. Canadians still install 10 times more air conditioners than heat pumps each year. So if we were able to transform the market, that way, we would really move the needle in terms of impact on energy bills and on overall emissions. So it would also stimulate the supply chain, right? If there was a market transformation strategy like that. So I think a national mandate would be great to see. And, actually, the building, decarbonisation Alliance has done some really great work in this area and recently published a paper called The cool way to heat pumps. And what that paper does is it analyzes the opportunity of installing heat pumps, instead of central air conditioners in Canada. So it's a really good read, I recommend it. But it really does talk about the market transformation strategy that could occur if every air conditioner was replaced with a heat pump instead. And then the other thing I just say is, and I think there's been a proven track record of this starting to work, especially over the last few years is more incentives for customers up front to put in a heat pump incentives for distributors and centers for manufacturers midstream, that could also shift the supply chain towards heat pumps as the recommended system of choice, I think would be, you know, a huge step in the right direction and certainly more access to financing to help those who want to make the right choice. I think those are all levers that will encourage adoption to accelerate. I mentioned earlier that Canada green homes grant is no longer accepting new applicants because of high demand and fully committed funding. But what that tells me is the program obviously worked and was a catalyst for more heat pumps to be installed in Canada. And that's part of driving the awareness and education for this technology, which is really I see it as a no regrets type technology to ramp up even faster.    Trevor Freeman  23:55 Yeah, I think that makes a lot of sense, Shawn. And I think that's part of what we're trying to do here on the show, as you know, and have these conversations of what are those key strategies, technology solutions that are out there that are going to help us address climate change? And what are the policy levers that are going to help make those solutions easier to implement, both at the large scale and for individual homeowners and residents? So there's some great thoughts there. So I'm curious, Shawn, you've got your heat pump installed. Now what's next on your decarbonisation journey?   Shawn Carr  24:32 Yeah, so the next thing I think the next thing for me will definitely be addressing space heating so it's my gas water heater that I want to replace next with a hybrid heat pump water heater. And the reason I'm thinking about that now is that my water heater is currently nine years old. You know, water heaters typically lasted 10 to 12 years. So again, much like I did with the heat pump, I don't want to wait until the water heater fails to be able to decide, you know, to be put on the spot and sort of be forced to make a decision quickly. So I've already gone out and done a bunch of research on hot water heat pumps and received a few quotes. And so really now it's just a matter of when to make the decision to move forward with the project. But that will, that will be next. And then I'm very excited to get an EV. And that will be something that I spent a lot of time researching about, but an EV will certainly be next on my list. And then after both of those two things I've been giving some thought about increasing the amount of generation that I have on my own home, I do have six kilowatts of solar on my roof, but I do have room to add more. And so thinking about maybe adding some more solar and eventually combining it with some storage that'll be probably a little bit further away. I don't know if I can convince my wife to do all of these things right now. But for me, it'll be the water heater next, then EV. And then potentially some solar storage. And I'm a bit of a technology nerd. So given the all the smart home technology that's been evolving and emerging in the market to kind of manage all of these new electrification technologies and so on, I'm always sort of looking at kind of what what's the next piece of tech that might help me track my energy better understand my energy better my carbon footprint and so on. And so yeah, always playing around with different tools in that regard, too. So that's what's next for me.   Trevor Freeman  26:35 Perfect. Yeah, that's great to hear. And some great ideas out there. I'm curious kind of to wrap us up here today, for someone who's just starting out. So for our listeners are out there kind of thinking of electrifying their own lives. Where does someone start? Where do you think someone should really kind of take that first step?   Shawn Carr  26:54 Yeah, that's a great question. I think. So if you want to start down the journey, first of all, I What I'd say is it does really depend if you're motivated by emissions reductions, or energy cost savings. But regardless of what your motivations are, I think, you know, the process that I would probably recommend for most is the default approach is likely going to be when it dies, electrify. I think that just thinking pragmatically is, you know, equipment lasts a long time. And you've, you really have one opportunity to make the right decision. And so, you know, for anyone out there has an appliance that's dying, or their car is end of life, or their heating system is getting older, I think, you know, I would, you know, encourage everyone to think about when it dies, electrify all that to be said, I do recommend that it's really important to have a plan because it will allow you to do some advanced preparation so that you're ready for that first or next electrification project. And I think you know, that plan can come from having a home energy audit done, for example, but it also your plan should take into consideration your current electrical service size, because you can save a lot of money on your electrification journey, if you can avoid having to do a service upgrade. So if you have a 100 amp service, for example, which is the most common here in Ontario, there's still a lot you can do. From an electric electrification standpoint, with that service size, let's assume you now have a plan, you've determined you have some surface capacity on your panel, you're motivated to reduce emissions, I would probably tackle things in this order. First of all, because we live in a cold climate, I would start with some air sealing and maybe insulation upgrades. And the reason for that is these types of efficiency upgrades can enable other electrification measures to be sized appropriately. So for example, right sizing your heat pump as an example. You want to address your air sealing first because that could save you money on the upfront cost of putting in that heat pump. So now your home is reasonably efficient. You're trying to do decide what to do next, depending on whether you're following that when it dies electrify approach or not the order in terms of emissions impact would probably be for just most residential homeowners are, one an EV if you already have a car number two would definitely a be a heat pump and you know for Canadians depending on where you live in the country, probably a cold climate heat pump and then number three would be the the heat pump water heater I think those are the for me, what are the big three? And the emphasis that I'm placing on heat pump technologies both for space heating and in water heating is because you know, those two things account for about 60 to 80% of emissions due to our cold climate and the prevalent use of natural gas for heating purposes. So cold climate heat pump technology is really incredible. It's a game changer for emissions reductions. And as I mentioned earlier, it is a no regrets action that you can take home. And for most people, you're going to see bill savings as a result of that technology investment as well. Aside from that, if any of your large load appliances fail, or if you're considering a level two EV charger, for example, I would consider power efficient appliances that use less load on your panel, because this is going to reduce your electricity demand and leave more capacity for other electrification initiatives. It's also going to leave more room on the grid for your neighbors to electrify so when I mentioned earlier, although a heat pump water heater is next for me, one of the things I forgot to mention is in planning and getting quotes for that heat pump. I also worked with an electrician to do a load calculation and actually looked at my electricity load over the last two years because I wanted to understand in advance what electrification projects can I move forward with right and I confirmed through doing that load analysis that I do have the room in my panel to do both the heat pump water heater and eventually the level two EV charger, but I'm going to have to go with a smaller level two EV charger. So a 32 amp charger as opposed to a 40 amp charger just based on my low profile so far. But this comes back to it's really important to have an electrification plan and try to work with the service within the service capacity you have because ultimately, that can obviously save you save you more money up front. And the last thing I'd say is if you want the full electrification meal deal, we can talk about solar storage, smart panels and home automation. But that's probably best left for another podcast, Trevor.   Trevor Freeman  32:04  Yeah, absolutely. And just for our listeners, there will be lots more of this to come. I think there's a lot of conversations we can have around everything from heat pump technology, to some of the smart technology coming out there, electrifying our homes and electrifying our lives is going to be a really big part of the future for a lot of us and trying to figure out that order. So it's great to hear some of your thoughts, Shawn, it's great to hear some of the journey that you've been on. And I really can't stress enough the importance, as you said, of starting to think about this, each of us in our own lives and trying to put that plan together so that when that furnace dies, or that you know, your your gas stove dies, and you need to replace it, you already know what you plan on doing. And maybe you've even got quotes or you've talked to that contractor and you have a plan and you're not left investing in a technology that's going to lock you into some emissions for the next, you know, 10 15 20 years. So great to hear your thoughts on that, and thanks a lot, Sean, for sharing your experience.    Shawn Carr  33:07 You're welcome.    Trevor Freeman  33:08 So, yeah, great. That kind of brings us to the end here. And as you know, from having been on the podcast before, we always wrap up with a series of questions here. And just a warning, since the last time you were on, I've actually kind of changed them up a little bit. So as long as you're ready, we'll dive right into those questions.    Shawn Carr  33:27 Yeah, sounds good, Trevor. Let's do it.    Trevor Freeman  33:29 Okay, so let's start by finding out what is a book that you've read that you think everyone should read?    Shawn Carr  33:36 Well, I'm not sure everyone should read it. But if you want to learn more about what we discussed today, and get really inspired by a realistic and feasible blueprint for fighting climate change, I am currently reading a book called electrify and optimist playbook for our clean energy future. And it's written by Saul Griffith who I just have a ton of respect for. I couldn't listen to Saul talk all day long. But it's a really good read.   Trevor Freeman  34:07 Great. Yeah, that is a fantastic book. So same question, but what about a movie or a show that you think everyone should watch?    Shawn Carr  34:15 Hmm, well, it's the NA, it's the NHL playoffs right now. So I'm not watching movies or TV shows. But the show that always left me wanting more was Game of Thrones. I love Game of Thrones.    Trevor Freeman  34:27 It's true. I mean, I wish we could get more that feels like an edge that won't be scratched. But hey, you never know. So if someone offered you a free round trip anywhere in the world right now, where would you go?   Shawn Carr  34:41 Well, I know both my wife and I would be on the same page here and it would definitely be Africa. And I know you live there. So when we're ready to plan our trip, I'll be reaching out to you.    Trevor Freeman  34:53 Yeah, that's right. For our listeners, I did spend some time living in a couple of different parts of Africa. So happy to To share thoughts with you. Who is someone that you admire?   Shawn Carr  35:04 I'd say definitely that would be my parents. They are kind, compassionate, supportive, fun, and great people. And those are all just qualities that I admire and people in general. So I gotta say, my parents.   Trevor Freeman  35:24 And finally, Shawn, what is something about the energy sector or its future that you're really excited about?    Shawn Carr  35:30 Yeah, for me, it's definitely the energy, just the energy transition in general, because it's in my mind the pathway to a cleaner and more sustainable future for future generations. And so I think for me that that would be that's what really gets me up in the morning and gets me excited to come to work at hydro Ottawa every day. I also love all the innovation and technology advancements that the energy transition is driving as well. So yeah, those are the things that excite me about the energy sector right now.   Trevor Freeman  36:02 Yeah, I mean, knowing you well, and I'm the same way I know that you like all the sort of new toys and new bells and whistles and functionality that we're seeing come out. And I think we're both pretty excited about that. Shawn, it's been great chatting with you today. I really appreciate you coming on the podcast, sharing your journey, sharing your experience and some of your insight into what residential homeowners might have in store for them as they tried to electrify their lives as well. So thanks very much.   Shawn Carr  36:30 No, thanks for having me. And I look forward to our next podcast.   Trevor Freeman  36:35 Absolutely. Yeah, there's no end of things that we can chat about. So we'll for sure have you on again.    Shawn Carr  36:40 Thanks, Trevor.    Trevor Freeman  36:42 Thanks a lot, Shawn. Thanks for tuning in to another episode of The think energy podcast. Don't forget to subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts, and it would be great if you can leave us a review and really helps us spread the word. As always, we would love to hear from you. Whether it's feedback, comments, or an idea for a show or guests. You can always reach us at think energy at hydro ottawa.com  

Michael chats with Saul Griffith, Australian-born engineer, inventor, advisor, author and 2007 MacArthur "Genius". He specialises in clean and renewable energy technologies, and has founded a dozen technology companies across 20 years in Silicon Valley, as well as authoring 3 books, including `Electrify', and `The Big Switch'. He has recently turned his attention from Otherlab, his independent Research and Development lab, to policy work and writing, including founding Rewiring America and Rewiring Australia, non-partisan organisations dedicated to electrification and decarbonisation and the associated policy and regulatory implications of meeting our climate goals. Saul received his Ph.D. at MIT in the junction between materials science and information theory. Prior to MIT, he studied in Sydney, Australia and at UC Berkeley in metallurgical engineering.    Links  Buy Saul's 2022 book Electrify: An Optimist's Playbook for Our Clean Energy Future: https://mitpress.mit.edu/9780262545044/electrify/ Buy Saul's The Big Switch: Australia's Electric Future: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Big-Switch-Australias-Electric-Future-ebook/dp/B09QFQHF8W Buy Saul's 2023 extended essay: https://www.quarterlyessay.com.au/essay/2023/03/the-wires-that-bind    Related Episodes The Bridgetown Initiator - Ep145: Prof Avinash Persaud: https://www.cleaningup.live/the-bridgetown-initiator-ep145-prof-avinash-persaud/ Audioblog 12: The 5 Superheroes of the Transition: https://www.cleaningup.live/audioblog-12-net-zero-will-be-harder-than-you-think-and-easier-part-ii-easier/

If you're a climate-conscious person, you likely already know some of the main ways you can reduce your contribution to greenhouse gasses: buy less, eat less meat, ride your bike. But there are other, less obvious methods we don't always think of: voting, having climate conversations, engaging with your local government, changing where your money is invested. And while our role as individuals does matter, we're more powerful when we work together in collective action.  Guests:  Jon Foley, Executive Director, Project Drawdown Eliza Nemser, Executive Director, Climate Changemakers This episode also features excerpts from Cory Booker, Anna Lappé, Frances Moore Lappé, Saul Griffith, Monique Figueiredo, Jonathan Chapman, Jennifer Anderson, Tanya Gulliver Garcia, Vernon Walker, Abrar Anwar, Slater Jewell-Kemker, Kyle Gracey and Alec Loorz.

If you're a climate-conscious person, you likely already know some of the main ways you can reduce your contribution to greenhouse gasses: buy less, eat less meat, ride your bike. But there are other, less obvious methods we don't always think of: voting, having climate conversations, engaging with your local government, changing where your money is invested. And while our role as individuals does matter, we're more powerful when we work together in collective action. Guests:  Jon Foley, Executive Director, Project Drawdown Eliza Nemser, Executive Director, Climate Changemakers This episode also features excerpts from Cory Booker, Anna Lappé, Frances Moore Lappé, Saul Griffith, Monique Figueiredo, Jonathan Chapman, Jennifer Anderson, Tanya Gulliver Garcia, Vernon Walker, Abrar Anwar, Slater Jewell-Kemker, Kyle Gracey and Alec Loorz.

This podcast is a commentary and does not contain any copyrighted material of the reference source. We strongly recommend accessing/buying the reference source at the same time. ■Reference Source https://www.ted.com/talks/saul_griffith_everyday_inventions ■Post on this topic (You can get FREE learning materials!) https://englist.me/188-academic-words-reference-from-saul-griffith-everyday-inventions-ted-talk/ ■Youtube Video https://youtu.be/64wGB1MuNtQ (All Words) https://youtu.be/9ny3x0yQdHw (Advanced Words) https://youtu.be/iv94CZ9__aY (Quick Look) ■Top Page for Further Materials https://englist.me/ ■SNS (Please follow!)

When US President Joe Biden was looking at how to make the largest economy in the world switch to electricity, he turned to an Australian… Dr Saul Griffith had a seat at the table as the future of American industry was sketched out. So how will America's plan affect Australia? Are we adapting fast enough? And what's the cost if we don't?  Today, former advisor to the Biden administration on climate policy, and contributor to The Saturday Paper, Saul Griffith, on the potential for a green economic boom in Australia.   Socials: Stay in touch with us on Twitter and Instagram Guest: Former advisor to the Biden administration on climate policy, and contributor to The Saturday Paper, Saul Griffith

This podcast is a commentary and does not contain any copyrighted material of the reference source. We strongly recommend accessing/buying the reference source at the same time. ■Reference Source https://www.ted.com/talks/saul_griffith_high_altitude_wind_energy_from_kites ■Post on this topic (You can get FREE learning materials!) https://englist.me/80-academic-words-reference-from-saul-griffith-high-altitude-wind-energy-from-kites-ted-talk/ ■Youtube Video https://youtu.be/0ZUwXCEwz-I (All Words) https://youtu.be/ge_payEM4tU (Advanced Words) https://youtu.be/rduVihA7ht4 (Quick Look) ■Top Page for Further Materials https://englist.me/ ■SNS (Please follow!)

We talk about Climate Changers with director Johan Gabrielsson. Following its world premiere at the 2023 Sydney Film Festival, this timely documentary will screen at more than 25 cinemas around the country, launching with a national Q&A event on Sunday 17 September.Join actor, climate advocate and moderator Yael Stone in conversation with Professor Tim Flannery, Dr Saul Griffith and Kavita Naidu for the live-streamed Q&A presented by ethical super fund Future Super. 

If you are a Volts subscriber, you are almost certainly familiar with Saul Griffith. I've been following him and his work for years, and I think I can say without hyperbole that he is the smartest person I have ever met. An Australian by birth and an MIT PhD by training, he got his start as a tinkerer, inventor, and entrepreneur, responsible for, among other things, the kite-based wind power company Makani and the innovation incubator Otherlab.A few years ago, alarmed by the lack of progress on climate change, he turned his attention to public advocacy, authoring the book Electrify and co-founding Rewiring America. That organization has, in relatively little time, become incredibly influential among US thought leaders and policy makers. It played a key role in the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act.In 2021, Griffith and his family moved back to Australia, where he helped found Rewiring Australia, and sure enough, it has already become as or more influential than its American counterpart. As Volties know, I am currently down in Australia. I was scheduled to do a public event with Griffith, so I thought it would be fun to meet up a little beforehand to record a pod.Neither of us had particularly prepared for said pod, but it will not surprise you to hear that Griffith was nonetheless as fascinating and articulate as always, on subjects ranging from IRA to Australian rooftop solar to green steel. Enjoy. Get full access to Volts at www.volts.wtf/subscribe

A groundbreaking transformation is underway in the United States, as they embark on an industrial revolution that aims to replace a staggering one billion fossil-fueled machines with clean, electric alternatives fueled by the forces of nature—wind, sun, and water. This remarkable shift, ignited by a masterful manoeuvre within the world's largest and most complex political economy, has set the stage for an inspiring journey. Bernard Hickey sits down with climate tech entrepreneur and activist Saul Griffith to unravel the story of how Saul and his fellow activists collaborated with Joe Biden's White House to successfully take control of the climate debate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're back! This time on a FULLY SOLAR POWERED POD with absolute legends Corey and Xtina of the Solar Punks Club. We threw the first proper Eco Rave—a solar + storage powered party—at their HQ in LA. Tune in to hear us chat about it the night before the event, and check out more from the day of here.We talked about how they got DER-pilled as non-energy people (big shouts to Saul Griffith!), putting together the largest fully solar powered camp at burning man, using culture as the tip of the spear to DER pill more youths and drive electrification, decarbonizing the entertainment sector, how many millions are spent on diesel to run festivals, how festivals and entertainment have become more about excess than abundance, what abundance mindset really means, the neuroticism of extraction based cultures, solar punk vs cyber punk, creating art with purpose, what punk is in 2023, being optimistic about optimism, and so much more! It's ultimately just a long discussion on why we think eco raves are so important. Xtina and Corey are GOATed beyond belief, and we plan to do a lot more of these. Enjoy! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dertaskforcenews.substack.com/subscribe

What if society completely phased out fossil fuels? This week, Saul Griffith joins the show to discuss how this future is actually possible. Best of all, much of the work can be done with our existing technology—starting from inside the home. Saul founded the organizations Rewiring America and Rewiring Australia, dedicated to the electrification of those countries. He's also the author of Electrify: An Optimist's Playbook for Our Clean Energy Future and The Big Switch: Australia's Electric Future. Saul talks about the efficacy of the variety of climate solutions on the table, from nuclear energy to carbon capture, and from geoengineering to his preferred method of electrification. GPT-4 also supplies a potential pathway to the complete electrification of society based on Saul's book—but is it too fantastical? Or does it not go far enough? Read the AI-generated stories for this episode here. Read the transcript of this episode here.  For more info on the podcast and transcripts of all of the episodes, visit www.possible.fm/podcast. Topics: 03:50 - Hellos and intros 04:50 - How Saul manages to stay optimistic 06:55 - How to inspire action against climate change 08:36 - Climate change is mostly a “machines problem” 14:41 - Why and how the solution should focus on households 17:47 - Should nuclear energy be part of the climate solution? 21:21 - Responding to GPT-4 “electrifying the world” story 23:56 - Responding to critics 25:20 - The technology that's still required for sustainability 29:42 - Carbon capture and storage: use cases and limitations 33:50 - The importance of systems change—a “new social contract” 43:45 - The efficacy of geoengineering 48:10 - Rapidfire questions 55:10 - Debrief with Reid and Aria Possible is a new podcast that sketches out the brightest version of the future—and what it will take to get there. Most of all, it asks: what if, in the future, everything breaks humanity's way? Hosted by Reid Hoffman and Aria Finger, each episode features an interview with a visionary from a different field: climate science, media, criminal justice, and more. The conversation also features another kind of guest: GPT-4, OpenAI's latest and most powerful language model to date. Each episode has a companion story, generated by GPT-4, which will serve as a jumping-off point for a hopeful, speculative discussion about what humanity could possibly get right if we leverage technology—and our collective effort—effectively. Possible is produced by Wonder Media Network and hosted by Reid Hoffman and Aria Finger. Our showrunner is Shaun Young. Possible is produced by Edie Allard and Sara Schleede. Jenny Kaplan is our Executive Producer and Editor. Special thanks to Nan Ransohoff, Christin Pelgrum, Surya Yalamanchili, Saida Sapeiva, Ian Alas, Greg Beato and Ben Relles.

Saul Griffith believes that the key to solving the climate crisis is to electrify everything, starting with our homes. The inventor, engineer and entrepreneur is spearheading this mission in his own postcode with Electrify 2515, which aims to have all household machines powered by renewable energy

Saul Griffith believes that the key to solving the climate crisis is to electrify everything, starting with our homes. The inventor, engineer and entrepreneur is spearheading this mission in his own postcode with Electrify 2515, which aims to have all household machines powered by renewable energy

In this episode, we got to chat with Saul Griffith about what it means to electrify everything, why it matters, and what people like you can do to help electrify your community!Saul is an inventor, engineer, MacArthur Genius award winner and much much more. He probably knows more about the US's energy system than anyone and helped shape the Inflation Reduction Act with his teammates at  Rewiring America . (The graph mentioned can be viewed here! https://youtu.be/TxeD1Y68tLM?t=1627)Timeline:0:00 Intro & Saul's climate journey.7:20 What electrification is and how much more efficient it is than fossil-fueled machines.15:45 Committed emissions from existing fossil fuel infrastructure would take us to 1.9°C or 2°C.18:20 IPCC's pathways to 1.5°C over-rely on negative emissions.21:25 What the mobilization we need right now looks like.23:35 Electrification is anti-inflationary.28:25 Community-level activism.35:30 Our laws were made for a fossil-fueled world. What regulations need to change? What should people invest their time and energy into to change these rules and laws?42:00 Why we need climate loans.47:45 Public vs. private infrastructure.51:20 Final message and call to action!Relevant Links:- Rewiring America: https://www.rewiringamerica.org/- Other Lab: https://www.otherlab.com/- Diagram of how US Energy flows through society: https://www.otherlab.com/blog-posts/us-energy-flow-super-sankey- 1 billion machines: https://saulgriffith.medium.com/one-billion-machines-48a7c3cf0694- Personalized Savings Calculator for the Inflation Reduction Act: https://www.rewiringamerica.org/app/ira-calculatorCrowdsourcing Sustainability links: - Sign up for the Crowdsourcing Sustainability newsletter! https://crowdsourcing-sustainability.ck.page/c34a46ed01 - Join the Crowdsourcing Sustainability Community! https://crowdsourcingsustainability.community/- CS Website: https://crowdsourcingsustainability.org Crowdsourcing Sustainability is a 501c3 nonprofit. Please consider supporting us so we can keep educating, inspiring, and empowering more people to act on climate where they live and work! https://crowdsourcingsustainability.org/donate And a huge thank you to Diego Rentsch as always for editing!!Support the show

In anticipation of Tu B'Shevat, the Jewish New Year of the Trees, Rabbi Steven spoke with Hans Detweiler, a member of the Mishkan Sustainability Team with an impressive environmental activism resume, for a conversation about small things you can do to decarbonize your life. Check out the show notes below for links to resources about decarbonization curated by the Mishkan Sustainability Team. ****So you are ready to work on decarbonizing your home? Here's a great consumer guide to think through all the pieces:https://www.buildingdecarb.org/store/p194/A_Pocket_Guide_to_All-Electric_Retrofits_of_Single-Family_Homes.htmlWhat is next for decarbonization in Chicago? Chicago is exempt from Illinois' building code, and is entirely responsible to develop its own code. This is a great opportunity, as the current code needs a lot of help! Learn more about Chicago's decarbonization plan here:https://www.chicago.gov/content/dam/city/progs/env/2022/Final-2022-Building-Decarb-City-Document.pdfWhy is Mishkan's Sustainability team excited about “electrify everything?” Read this great explanation from energy guru Saul Griffith. Pour a cup of coffee first: this article from Vox is intense and captures the big picture and the urgency.https://www.vox.com/energy-and-environment/21349200/climate-change-fossil-fuels-rewiring-america-electrifyIf you read the Vox article above, you understand the importance of switching from gas furnaces to heat pumps. Heat pumps that work well throughout a Chicago winter are now available! Consumer Reports asks the question of how well they work in cold climates in the article below, and finds they work well. By the way, if your HVAC contractor says “no,” they are wrong! The sustainability committee can recommend up-to-date firms.https://www.consumerreports.org/heat-pumps/can-heat-pumps-actually-work-in-cold-climates-a4929629430/Decarbonization is a great challenge. How can we do it with equity? To finish you reading list, here is a moving case study from Pembroke IL about equity and the Heat Pump Revolution in Illinois:https://rmi.org/from-poverty-to-power-in-pembroke/****For upcoming Shabbat services and programs, check our event calendar, and see our Accessibility & Inclusion page for information about our venues. Follow us on Instagram and like us on Facebook for more updates.Produced by Mishkan Chicago. Music composed, produced, and performed by Kalman Strauss.

The Orange Is the New Black star and I have been IG friends, supporting each other's climate work, for some years. In 2021 Yael Stone gave up her Green Card to combat climate change and committed to offsetting future overseas gigs by donating 50% of earnings to climate charities. Now she runs Hi Neighbour, a community platform that assists in the “just transition” for fossil fuel workers into low-carbon jobs.I have admired Yael's wildness from afar but decided it was time to meet IRL. For this conversation we sit in her garage in the small town of Bulli and discuss how much we love “wokism” intricacies, the complexities of the Geoffrey Rush case and how getting arrested as “a middle-class white lady” does no one any good. Be warned, this episode gets raw.Follow Yael on Instagram. This is best.And it's worth watching Yael's explainer for donating to climate charities hereHere's a link to her awesome Hi Neighbour platform, with materials for rolling out her concept in your neighbourhood.You might also like to listen to the Saul Griffith episode I mention – about how to electrify your home. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the last few months, two separate fledgling companies — Impulse and Channing Street Copper — have announced the upcoming release of a new product: an induction stove with a lithium-ion battery built in. This might not seem like a big deal, but it is actually a peek into a whole new world of possibilities.Embedding batteries into appliances opens up all kinds of intriguing opportunities. A stove with a battery can deliver more power at the point of cooking. It can continue working when the power grid goes out. And it can serve as distributed storage to assist in grid stability.To explore the new world of battery-enabled appliances, I contacted two experts. The first, Sam Calisch, helped start Rewiring America, a nonprofit focused on national electrification. He also worked at Otherlab with previous Volts guest Saul Griffith, from which he helped launch Channing Street Copper Company, where he is chief scientist. Channing's first product is a stove with a battery (for now, there's a wait list, and they're only selling in the Bay Area).My second guest is Wyatt Merrill, who works at the Department of Energy's Building Technologies Office, where he manages programs related to building electrification. He was instrumental in helping Otherlab secure more than $2 million in funding from DOE to help launch the Channing stove project. I am excited to talk to Sam and Wyatt about the merits of embedding batteries in stoves, the things battery-enabled stoves allow consumers to do, and the future grid benefits battery-enabled appliances could yield. Get full access to Volts at www.volts.wtf/subscribe

Australian inventor and entrepreneur Dr Saul Griffith has a simple solution to fix one of the biggest problem our world faces. He says to put the brakes on climate change we need to do one thing; electrify everything.

LINKS No Dig Quick Start Course https://changeunderground.net/the-no-dig-gardening-course/ buymeacoffee.com/changeug email: jon@worldorganicnews.com Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1546564598887681 Transcript: https://worldorganicnews.com/episode311/   Certified 'genius' Saul Griffith has a plan to decarbonise Australia — and it will only take 101 million machines https://amp.abc.net.au/article/101453956 Who's Gonna Save Us https://overcast.fm/+7wElamOLE Trombe Wall https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trombe_wall#:~:text=A%20Trombe%20wall%20is%20a,the%20wall%20and%20the%20glaze.

Saul Griffiths says everything we use should run on electricity; our cars, our tractors, our heating  systems, and in turn power will become cheaper and cleaner. 

This week's episode features highlights from VERGE Electrify, including PG&E CEO Patti Poppe, DoE official Jigar Shah and electrification expert Saul Griffith.

Saul Griffith, author of “The Big Switch”, tells Antony Currie why neither hydrogen nor carbon capture can tackle global warming. Instead, electrifying everything from cars to stoves will, thanks to ample sun and wind Down Under. It'd spark a jobs and exports boom, too.

As the federal government releases its plan to reduce emissions, we revisit our conversation with scientist and inventor Saul Griffith. His solution to climate change: electrification.

ICANN in Russia, Nuclear vs Solar power, Elden Ring, Audiblegate, Chunky Palmtop  Setting the stage for Russia vs Ukraine.  ICANN won't revoke Russian Internet domains, says effect would be "devastating".  Google blocks RT, Sputnik from the Play app store in Europe.  Kevin Rothrock on Twitter: "Police officers in Moscow today are stopping people, demanding to see their phones, READING THEIR MESSAGES, and refusing to release them if they refuse."  Telegram Harm Reduction for Users in Russia and Ukraine.  Mastercard, Visa suspend operations in Russia after the invasion.  Electrify: An Optimist's Playbook for Our Clean Energy Future by Saul Griffith.  The state of E-sports in 2022.  E-sports vs Chess.  World Chess Boxing Championship.  Europe's Sleeping Giant Awakens.  Apple 'Peek Performance' event invite is an AR portal.  Chonky Palmtop.  The age of Fidonet versus the age of the Internet.  Brandon Sanderson's Kickstarter for 4 secret novels raises $15M in first day.  Audiblegate.  The History of the Standard Oil Company.  Framework laptop.  The Dawn of Everything. Host: Leo Laporte Guests: Brianna Wu, Cory Doctorow, and Alex Wilhelm Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: nureva.com noom.com/twit podium.com/twit linode.com/twit

ICANN in Russia, Nuclear vs Solar power, Elden Ring, Audiblegate, Chunky Palmtop  Setting the stage for Russia vs Ukraine.  ICANN won't revoke Russian Internet domains, says effect would be "devastating".  Google blocks RT, Sputnik from the Play app store in Europe.  Kevin Rothrock on Twitter: "Police officers in Moscow today are stopping people, demanding to see their phones, READING THEIR MESSAGES, and refusing to release them if they refuse."  Telegram Harm Reduction for Users in Russia and Ukraine.  Mastercard, Visa suspend operations in Russia after the invasion.  Electrify: An Optimist's Playbook for Our Clean Energy Future by Saul Griffith.  The state of E-sports in 2022.  E-sports vs Chess.  World Chess Boxing Championship.  Europe's Sleeping Giant Awakens.  Apple 'Peek Performance' event invite is an AR portal.  Chonky Palmtop.  The age of Fidonet versus the age of the Internet.  Brandon Sanderson's Kickstarter for 4 secret novels raises $15M in first day.  Audiblegate.  The History of the Standard Oil Company.  Framework laptop.  The Dawn of Everything. Host: Leo Laporte Guests: Brianna Wu, Cory Doctorow, and Alex Wilhelm Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: nureva.com noom.com/twit podium.com/twit linode.com/twit

ICANN in Russia, Nuclear vs Solar power, Elden Ring, Audiblegate, Chunky Palmtop  Setting the stage for Russia vs Ukraine.  ICANN won't revoke Russian Internet domains, says effect would be "devastating".  Google blocks RT, Sputnik from the Play app store in Europe.  Kevin Rothrock on Twitter: "Police officers in Moscow today are stopping people, demanding to see their phones, READING THEIR MESSAGES, and refusing to release them if they refuse."  Telegram Harm Reduction for Users in Russia and Ukraine.  Mastercard, Visa suspend operations in Russia after the invasion.  Electrify: An Optimist's Playbook for Our Clean Energy Future by Saul Griffith.  The state of E-sports in 2022.  E-sports vs Chess.  World Chess Boxing Championship.  Europe's Sleeping Giant Awakens.  Apple 'Peek Performance' event invite is an AR portal.  Chonky Palmtop.  The age of Fidonet versus the age of the Internet.  Brandon Sanderson's Kickstarter for 4 secret novels raises $15M in first day.  Audiblegate.  The History of the Standard Oil Company.  Framework laptop.  The Dawn of Everything. Host: Leo Laporte Guests: Brianna Wu, Cory Doctorow, and Alex Wilhelm Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: nureva.com noom.com/twit podium.com/twit linode.com/twit

ICANN in Russia, Nuclear vs Solar power, Elden Ring, Audiblegate, Chunky Palmtop  Setting the stage for Russia vs Ukraine.  ICANN won't revoke Russian Internet domains, says effect would be "devastating".  Google blocks RT, Sputnik from the Play app store in Europe.  Kevin Rothrock on Twitter: "Police officers in Moscow today are stopping people, demanding to see their phones, READING THEIR MESSAGES, and refusing to release them if they refuse."  Telegram Harm Reduction for Users in Russia and Ukraine.  Mastercard, Visa suspend operations in Russia after the invasion.  Electrify: An Optimist's Playbook for Our Clean Energy Future by Saul Griffith.  The state of E-sports in 2022.  E-sports vs Chess.  World Chess Boxing Championship.  Europe's Sleeping Giant Awakens.  Apple 'Peek Performance' event invite is an AR portal.  Chonky Palmtop.  The age of Fidonet versus the age of the Internet.  Brandon Sanderson's Kickstarter for 4 secret novels raises $15M in first day.  Audiblegate.  The History of the Standard Oil Company.  Framework laptop.  The Dawn of Everything. Host: Leo Laporte Guests: Brianna Wu, Cory Doctorow, and Alex Wilhelm Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: nureva.com noom.com/twit podium.com/twit linode.com/twit

ICANN in Russia, Nuclear vs Solar power, Elden Ring, Audiblegate, Chunky Palmtop  Setting the stage for Russia vs Ukraine.  ICANN won't revoke Russian Internet domains, says effect would be "devastating".  Google blocks RT, Sputnik from the Play app store in Europe.  Kevin Rothrock on Twitter: "Police officers in Moscow today are stopping people, demanding to see their phones, READING THEIR MESSAGES, and refusing to release them if they refuse."  Telegram Harm Reduction for Users in Russia and Ukraine.  Mastercard, Visa suspend operations in Russia after the invasion.  Electrify: An Optimist's Playbook for Our Clean Energy Future by Saul Griffith.  The state of E-sports in 2022.  E-sports vs Chess.  World Chess Boxing Championship.  Europe's Sleeping Giant Awakens.  Apple 'Peek Performance' event invite is an AR portal.  Chonky Palmtop.  The age of Fidonet versus the age of the Internet.  Brandon Sanderson's Kickstarter for 4 secret novels raises $15M in first day.  Audiblegate.  The History of the Standard Oil Company.  Framework laptop.  The Dawn of Everything. Host: Leo Laporte Guests: Brianna Wu, Cory Doctorow, and Alex Wilhelm Download or subscribe to this show at https://twit.tv/shows/this-week-in-tech Get episodes ad-free with Club TWiT at https://twit.tv/clubtwit Sponsors: nureva.com noom.com/twit podium.com/twit linode.com/twit

By electrifying virtually everything, we can solve the climate change crisis. Electric vehicles, electric heating, electric cooking, a decarbonised grid – all powered by renewables and batteries. This is the future Australia should be pursuing, argues inventor and entrepreneur, Saul Griffith. He says the electric revolution starts in the home, will lead to far cheaper energy costs, as well as creating new jobs, and lucrative new exports.

This episode we bring you a conversation with energy expert Saul Griffith about his new book “The Big Switch” which looks at energy flows across the Australian economy and provides a blueprint for how Australia can decarbonize our society, improve our health AND save households thousands of dollars each year,LANGUAGE WARNING: a guest drops the F-bomb once in this recordingThis was recorded live as part of the Australia Institute's webinar series, on Thursday the 24th of February 2022 and things may have changed since recording.Host: Ebony Bennett, Deputy Director at the Australia Institute // @ebony_bennettGuests:Saul Griffith, founder Rewiring Australia, author of The Big Switch // @GriffithSaulDan Cass, energy policy and regulatory lead, The Australia Institute // @danjcassThe Australia Institute // @theausinstituteProducer: Jennifer Macey // @jennifermaceyTheme Music: Pulse and Thrum; additional music by Blue Dot Sessions

By electrifying virtually everything, we can solve the climate change crisis. Electric vehicles, electric heating, electric cooking, a decarbonised grid – all powered by renewables and batteries. This is the future Australia should be pursuing, argues inventor and entrepreneur, Saul Griffith. He says the electric revolution starts in the home, will lead to far cheaper energy costs, as well as creating new jobs, and lucrative new exports.

Saul Griffith says Australia should lead world on electrifying everything, starting with cars and households. He plans to turn his old Monaro into an EV too.

In order to be net-zero you first need to reduce your emissions as much as possible and then you can neutralize the remaining with carbon offsets. Except many experts in the the climate space will say that is incorrect, and will not help us prevent the worst impacts of climate change. What you actually need to do is neutralize them with carbon removal. On the show today is Nan Ransohoff, Head of Climate at Stripe, to teach us the difference between carbon removal and carbon offsets, and share details about how she and her team are working to ensure carbon removal companies are growing at the pace we need them to in order to reach net-zero by 2050. Stripe is a billion dollar “start-up” that when not simplifying payments and increasing the GDP of the internet, is working to ensure carbon removal technology develops at the pace needed to prevent the most catastrophic effects of climate change.  Nan and her team are working to build a large-scale, voluntary market for carbon removal by pooling demand from Stripe's 1M+ users, and then using those funds to help promising new carbon removal technologies accelerate down the cost curve. Nan and I discuss her journey into the world of climate, her mental model for climate action, and the role of carbon removal in achieving net-zero emissions. We also dive into why Stripe Climate is putting in the legwork so humanity has the menu of options it needs by 2050 to reach net-zero emissions.  Additional resources mentioned in the episode: Saul Griffith's Blog Carbon Management: Fun, Profit, Policy, and Climate Mitigation | S. Julio Friedmann You can get in touch with Nan on Twitter @nanransohoff, and via email at nransohoff@stripe.com. Season two is powered by Climate People. If you are a software developer or recruiter looking to get into climate tech, Climate People is the best place to start. You can reach Brendan Anderson, CEO of Climate People, at brendan@climatepeople.com. Keep up with the show by following The Net Zero Life on Twitter and Instagram (@thenetzerolife).  You can also get in touch at www.thenetzerolife.com or via email at nathan@thenetzerolife.com.

Electrifying everything in your home (and garage) can improve comfort and quality of life, but right now, it's often an expensive hassle. These guys have ideas about how to make it cheaper and easier.  Get full access to Volts at www.volts.wtf/subscribe