Planet Beyond

Planet Beyond


Episode 26: Energy Transition – No Miracles Needed

July 26, 2023

In 2023 the world entered its El Niño cycle of warmer oceanic currents. Without the moderating effect of the cooler La Niña effects, climate records have been tumbling – in many cases smashed by several standard deviations. Sea ice is at record lows, and North Atlantic surface temperatures are, in places, up to 5°C warmer than average.



With the COP 28 climate conference on the horizon, the climate response is inconsistent. Several countries are backtracking on climate action, while others are earmarking more money than ever before for climate initiatives.



But how to spend that money remains a question. Our guest this episode argues that all of our energy needs can be met with renewables, without the need for further investment into new technologies, or into nuclear baseload capacity. Everything we need is in place, it just needs resourcing.



Host



Alex Conacher, Reby Media



Guest



Mark Jacobson, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University



Resources



To find Mark Jacobson’s recently published book covering his work, please click here