Podcast Episodes

What Is a Watt?

Season 2 Episode 46

What is the difference between energy and power? How does the power grid work? And what’s the difference between a megawatt and a megawatt-hour? 

On this week’s episode, we answer those questions and …

Published on 4 months, 1 week ago

If You Care About Food, You Have to Care About Land

Season 2 Episode 45

Food is a huge climate problem. It’s responsible for somewhere between a quarter and a third of global greenhouse gas emissions, but it concerns a much smaller share of global climate policy. And wha…

Published on 4 months, 2 weeks ago

It’s Easiest to Electrify This Type of Truck

Season 2 Episode 44

You might not think that often about medium-duty trucks, but they’re all around you: ambulances, UPS and FedEx delivery trucks, school buses. And although they make up a relatively small share of veh…

Published on 4 months, 3 weeks ago

A New Grand Theory of Why Decarbonization Is So Hard

Season 2 Episode 43

Why has it been so hard for the world to make progress on climate change over the past 30 years? Maybe it’s because we’ve been thinking about the problem wrong. Academics and economists have often fr…

Published on 5 months ago

The Supreme Court’s Double-Edged Change to Permitting Law

Season 2 Episode 42

Did the Supreme Court just make it easier to build things in this country — or did it give a once-in-a-lifetime gift to the fossil fuel industry? Last week, the Supreme Court ruled 8-0 against enviro…

Published on 5 months, 1 week ago

Shift Key Classic: The World Will Miss 1.5C. What Comes Next?

Season 2 Episode 41

Shift Key is off this week for Memorial Day, so we’re re-running one of our favorite episodes from the past. With Republicans in the White House and Congress now halfway to effectively repealing the …

Published on 5 months, 2 weeks ago

How the GOP Megabill Would Reshape the U.S. Energy Economy

Season 2 Episode 40

Republicans are preparing to tear up America’s clean energy tax credits as part of their budget reconciliation megabill. Hollowing out those policies will have sweeping implications for the country’s…

Published on 5 months, 3 weeks ago

The Fight Over the Inflation Reduction Act Has Arrived

Season 2 Episode 39

The fight over the Inflation Reduction Act has arrived. After months of discussion, the Republican majority in the House is now beginning to write, review, and argue about its plans to transform the …

Published on 5 months, 4 weeks ago

Spain’s Blackout and the Miracle of the Modern Power Grid

Season 2 Episode 38

Last week, more than 50 million people across mainland Spain and Portugal suffered a blackout that lasted more than 10 hours and shuttered stores, halted trains, and dealt more than $1 billion in eco…

Published on 6 months ago

How Texas Could Destroy Its Electricity Market

Season 2 Episode 37

Texas is one of the country’s biggest producers of zero-emissions energy. Last year, the Lone Star State surpassed California to become the country’s No. 1 market for utility-scale solar. More solar …

Published on 6 months, 1 week ago