The Energy Talk

Lithium-ion batteries are used in tech gadgets and electric vehicles, but the high cost of lithium extraction and ambiguous mining practices for several key components has led the industry to look for alternative technologies for energy storage.

James Quinn is the CEO of Faradion and guides us this week through a conversation about energy storage. Faradion is the world leader in non-aqueous sodium-ion cell technology that provides cheaper, cleaner energy for key applications, such as transportation, storage, back-up power, and energy in remote locations. 

As of December 6, 2020, over 9,279 fires have burned 4,359,517 acres, more than 4% of California's roughly 100 million acres of land, making 2020 the largest wildfire season recorded in California's modern history. This has also led to large-scale power shutoffs.

Shawn Adderly, Chief of Staff & Principal Program Manager at Pacific Gas & Electric company - California's largest Investor-Owned Utility serving 5.48 million customers - joins us this week to talk about the recording-breaking wildfires this year and the effect its' had on the electricity grid and residents of the state of California. 

Disclaimer: The views shared by Shawn in this episode represents his own thoughts and might not represent the position of PG&E on the matters discussed. 

_

Connect with

The Middle East has a long history with the energy sector, with many countries in the region benefitting from the prosperity in the oil and gas sector for decades - but how will the rapid growth of the region cope with the energy transition?

This week, Colman Hands joins us to discuss the country of Qatar and how it is positioning itself with its natural gas and solar investments to take on the transformation of the energy sector, driven by climate change.

Colman Hands is the Sustainable Energy Programmes Manager at The Al-Attiyah Foundation based in Doha, Qatar.

~THIS IS PART TWO OF A TWO-PART SERIES~

_

Connect with

Colman on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colman-hands-3187a443/

Learn more about The Al-Attiyah Foundation: https://www.abhafoundation.org/

_

*Credits*

The Middle East has a long history with the energy sector, with many countries in the region benefitting from the prosperity in the oil and gas sector for decades - but how will the rapid growth of the region cope with the energy transition?

This week, Sudharsan Sarathy joins us to discuss the implications that policy and investments in alternative energy generation sources are going to have as we move into the critical years of establishing a global low carbon economy. He guides us through a conversation covering LNG, Petrochemicals, and the energy history of the Middle East region.

Sudharsan is a senior oil analyst at a leading firm based in Dubai, UAE.

~THIS IS PART ONE OF A TWO-PART SERIES~

_

Connect with

Sudharsan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarathysudharsan/

_

*Credits*

Global oil prices have been pushed under $40 per barrel over the last few months in large parts due to the pandemic, this will have lasting impacts on the industry and would potentially take years to rebound. 

Fraser Cowie is the Eastern Hemisphere Sales Manager at Gyrodata, he joins us this week to discuss how the pandemic is affecting the oil and gas services industry and what low oil prices will look like for the future of GyroData.

Recommended podcast: How to survive a downturn - https://podcasts.apple.com/ng/podcast/putra-adhiguna-how-to-survive-a-downturn/id1467655589?i=1000443859780&ref=dishapages

_

Connect with

Fraser on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/fraser-cowie-080435113/

Learn more about GyroData: www.gyrodata.com/

_

*Credits*

This episode was made possible with the help of Stephen Forrester. 

Monika is the Founder & Managing Director of Energy Dialogues, a platform that unites the energy industry through dialogues and serves as inspiration for our podcast. 

This week, Monika guides as we explore how conversations around energy have evolved over the years as a direct result of climate change and the energy transition, and what this would mean for the future of the energy industry and the role of collaborations going forward. 

Energy Dialogues creates strategic opportunities for worldwide energy industry leaders to meet, converse, learn, and leverage available business insights and potentialities. 

_

Connect with

Monika on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/monika-sim%C3%B5es-2601b94/

Become a member of Energy Dialogues (It's free till the end of the year): energy-dialogues.com/ 

_

*Credits*

This episode was made possible with the help of Bena Leslie.

Nuclear energy produces clean electricity, but why isn't it considered as a main energy generation source to address climate change?

Matthew and Amanda join us this week to answer our questions and discuss the role of nuclear in the energy transition.

They are both active members of NAYGN (North America Young Generation in Nuclear). NAYGN provides opportunities for a young generation of nuclear enthusiasts to develop leadership and professional skills, create life-long connections, engage and inform the public, and inspire today’s nuclear technology professionals to meet the challenges of the 21st century.

Recommended resources:

Podcast on Radiophobia - podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-278-john-lindberg-public-affairs-manager-world-nuclear/id1331598443?i=1000491305438

_

Connect with 

This is part 2 of a 2 part series.

A Japanese bulk carrier ran aground on coral reefs of Mauritius on 25 July 2020. The ship began to leak fuel oil (nearly 4000 tonnes) in the following weeks.

Our guest this week is Yuvan Beejadhur, a blue economy expert who has worked with the UN and the World Bank. Yuvan is also a Mauritian,  and in this episode, we discuss the oil spill that has had a devastating impact on marine life and the Mauritius Economy.

In this second part, we discuss with Yuvan the path forward from the oil spill and where the responsibilities for the events lie.

_

A Japanese bulk carrier ran aground on coral reefs of Mauritius on 25 July 2020. The ship began to leak fuel oil (nearly 4000 tonnes) in the following weeks.

Welcome to the first episode of season 3.

Our guest this week is Yuvan Beejadhur, a blue economy expert who has worked with the UN and the World Bank. Yuvan is also a Mauritian,  and in this episode, we discuss the oil spill that has had a devastating impact on marine life and the Mauritius Economy. 

This is part 1 of a 2 part series.

_

Pramod, Kushal, and Joshua are building an energy literacy program that integrates with school curriculums in Nepal. 

In this campfire episode, we discuss how their project has been affected by the pandemic, especially since schools can no longer hold physical classes. We explore how social factors, lack of proper access to electricity, and the internet makes the effects felt by the pandemic disproportional in certain communities. 

_

Connect 

5 graduate students from the University of Michigan entered a grand challenge to find a practical use for nuclear waste, and here is the winning idea that won them $17,000.

Anya, Jacob, Luyao, Aniket, and Marianna make up the SustainiUM team. They join us on this episode of our campfire series to discuss their solution to creating a viable product/service utilizing nuclear waste. The solution that won them the competition was to use the heat generated from spent nuclear fuel to process sewage sludge and transform it into sustainable biomass.

In this conversation we explore their team dynamics, the motivations behind entering the competition, why they decided on their winning entry, and how balancing technology and policy was key in completing the competition. 

_

Connect with the team on SustainiUM LinkedIn

Co-founders, Isha Kulkarni and Tanmay Takle started Degrees of Change to inspire systemic action on climate change and bridge the knowledge gap .

In the 3rd episode of the campfire series, we introduce Tanmay and Isha, both from India with a global educational background. We explore their story and motivations behind building their platform Degrees of Change. 

Degrees of Change is a community working to demystify climate change and sustainability in India and the world. We hope to inspire systemic action by providing insight and analysis through a holistic lens. Our platform serves as a voice for like-minded individuals across borders and disciplines, dissatisfied with the alarmist rhetoric around sustainable development, each with a unique insight to offer.

As we step into the decade of action, we hope to bring about the degrees of change the world needs.

Paola & Areli are building solar water distillers for rural communities in Bolivia while being in their 4th year of University.

In this campfire episode, we introduce Paola Carvajal and Areli Diaz, Co-founders of the Student energy chapter at the University of San Francisco Xavier de Chuquísaca. We go deeper into why they chose this project and how they are adjusting their plans with social distancing measures in place, especially since the second phase of their project involved organizing workshops for young children and women. 

_

Connect 

Winner, Alero, and the rest of their team set out to build an energy literacy program to help primary and secondary school students learn more about energy in their local community in Nigeria, then the pandemic hit and it was back to the drawing board. 

Welcome to our first campfire episode, over the next 8 weeks we'll be hearing the stories of different teams of young people building projects in the energy space. 

In our first episode, we head to Nigeria to hear from the Student Energy chapter at the University of Port Harcourt.

Connect 

Last month, the WTI oil price traded negative for the first time in history, thanks to the coronavirus and other contributing factors. 

In this episode, we dive into the reasons behind this occurrence and what this pandemic will mean for the larger oil and gas markets.

Guiding us through this conversation is Anna Mikulska, a nonresident fellow at the Center for Energy Studies at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy, and a fellow at the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania.

_

840 million people don't have access to energy, and by 2030, 90% of the people without energy will be in Sub-Saharan Africa. (Source: IEA)

Dr. Rebekah Shirley is the Chief Research Officer at Power For All, she guides us through a conversation about the real-world impact that comes with access to energy. She introduces us to 2 research campaigns (Powering Jobs, and Utilities 2.0) that put numbers to the progress and empowerment that energy access has brought to developing communities. 

Contact us: energytalkpodcast@gmail.com

_

Women account for 26% of the total workforce in the energy sector, but their representation at higher levels in the organization is even less: 23% of managers and 17% of board members are female on average. (According to 2018 report from BCG and WoNY).

Anu Adasolum, Chief Operating Officer of Rensource Energy, joins us this week to discuss the topic of women in energy and give her take on what the future holds for renewable energy in West Africa. 

_

Big banks and institutions are making commitments to divest from fossil fuel projects, but where will new investments go? and is this the right move?

Joining us this week to answer those questions is Robert West, Founder, and CEO of Thunder Said Energy, a research consultancy that looks into disruptive energy technologies that can change the energy systems and help investors put their capital in the right places. 

_

Covid-19 is affecting job markets worldwide and many young people are facing increasing uncertainty in their career prospects. 

In this episode, Promise Ahante, SPE (Society of Petroleum Engineers) president of the Imperial College chapter, guides us through a story of his own experiences as a young professional in the energy industry. From graduating in the middle of the oil crisis in 2016 to being awarded a scholarship to pursue his masters' degree in the UK. 

We also discuss the energy transition and the impact it'll inevitably have on the petroleum industry.

_

Connect with Promise

Earth Hacks works with college students to host 48-hour environmental hackathons focused on creating innovative, equitable, and just solutions to the climate crisis.

Joining us this week is the groups' Executive Director and Atmospheric Science Software Developer at NASA, Sanjana Paul. We discuss how her passion for finding workable solutions to climate challenges lead to starting Earth Hacks and her work at NASA, and about the most ambitious project The Earth Hacks team has taken on so far, named Capsule. 

_

Connect with Sanjana

Ayodeji Dada is the CEO of Stratagem Energy Management Company, Nigeria’s emerging energy management company for manufacturers, entrepreneurs, SMEs, and government agencies that want to reduce cost and maximize profit.

In this episode, he is joined by Jennifer Anya to discuss the important role energy efficiency is playing in the energy transition. 

_

Connect with Ayodeji

Teague Egan is the CEO of EnergyX and on this episode, he guides us through a conversation on the exploration and production of lithium for battery technologies and the role the lithium industry will play in the clean energy systems of the future.

_

Connect with Teague

James is an entrepreneur, digital nomad, and founder of island innovation. Where he helps islands transition towards low carbon energy sources and develop sustainable practices for the environment.

In this episode, James guides us through a conversation about the unique challenges islands face with energy generation and distribution, and how this particular problem results in a much higher electricity cost than most other parts of the world. We also discuss the effect tourism has on the economy and environment of many tropical islands, for good and for bad. 

Last year, Island Innovation organized a virtual island summit, a remote conference that connected over 4000 representatives from islands around the world, James discusses the impact of this event and what lessons he took away from it. 

_

Connect with James 

Ujunwa Ojemeni is an impact investing and energy expert with experience in the areas of opportunity maturation, financing, and policy. Previously a Senior Investment Associate at All On, responsible for driving clean energy investment opportunities from origination to closing as well as providing strategic, governance and operational support to investees of All On.

She is also the Founder and President of the African Women in Energy Development Initiative (AWEDI Network) focused on promoting the participation of women in the energy sector through mentorship programs, career sponsorship (acceleration), networking opportunities, professional development and leadership training for women at all stages of their energy careers and for female students at the secondary and tertiary levels.

_

Connect with Ujunwa on:

Climate change disproportionately affects African communities but it's still not discussed in many African countries, in this episode, we explore some of the reasons why.

Vanessa Nakate, a youth climate activist from Uganda, joins the conversation this week to share her experiences while raising awareness for climate change in her local community and representing Africa at international conferences. 

Recently she was involved in a major incident at Davos 2020, an event that included misrepresentation by the media and a lack of attention for African voices in the climate movement.

_

Learn more about Vanessa and her work

Artificial intelligence technology will drastically change the way we work but what about the effect it'll have on energy systems?

This week we have the Information Management Operations Team Lead at Chevron, Nigeria with us. We'll be discussing the advancements being made in Artificial Intelligence and computer science technology which will make us more productive and threaten the global job markets as more functions become automated. 

We also discuss the importance of the oil and gas in developing countries and what that will mean with our changing climate and how to respond to growing pressures to divest entirely from fossil fuels.

_

Connect with Dejo 

Come hang out with us on the first bonus episode of season 2. 

In this episode, we introduce our new team member - Oghosa, our Head of Engagement -, give a recap on the episodes we've had so far and run through some energy news that has interested us over the last few weeks. One of which includes the effect the Coronavirus (COVID-19) has had on global energy markets. 

Student Energy is a global charity building the next generation of energy leaders who will accelerate our world’s transition to a sustainable future, and this week we speak to the organization's Executive Director.

_

Guled Ahmed is the CEO and Founder of Power Off-Grid and Jiko Bio-Gas, both operating in Somalia. He has gotten recognition over the years for his innovative approach towards rural electrification in Somalia, some of his patent solutions include trading Goats for solar home systems... yes, Goats.

In this episode, we discuss a lot about the operations of his companies and also dive into how global climate and energy policies sometimes negatively affect developing/low-income countries. These anti-Global South biases have serious repercussions, many of which are making the goal of global energy access by 2030 unattainable, at least for many communities in the Global South.

_

Sandra Dozie is the CEO of Salpha Energy, a company that provides solar electricity products to various homes, businesses, and income levels across West Africa. 

She joins us for the first episode of season 2 to discuss the importance of being an active player in the push to permanently eradicate energy poverty. Sandra worked with the UN at the historic period in 2015 when the Sustainable Development Goals were first implemented, this ambitious move by the UN inspired Sandra to come back to Nigeria a year later. 

In 2017, Salpha Energy was born, and a little while later a major recession hit Nigeria, weakening an already unstable economy. 

Find out how Sandra and the rest of her team overcame this challenge and many more on their path to establishing Salpha. 

_

The Energy Access Explorer provides the data and tools necessary to create a future where all people have access to affordable, reliable and modern energy. This week on the podcast we'll be speaking to an individual that is helping to build it.

Dimitrios Mentis is the project manager of The Energy Access Explorer, and a senior associate at the World Resources Institute (WRI). The Energy Energy Access Explorer was launched in September of 2019 but has been in development for much longer. Right now in its beta stage and only covering 3 East African countries (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania). 

The potential for the project is massive as it will help renewable energy developers, governments, NGOs, and researchers make quicker and more informed decisions with access to useful data and accelerate our progress towards SDG7.

Yetunde Fadeyi is the founder of REES Africa and co-founder of Wattcore Energy, both organizations focus on providing electricity to disenfranchised communities and promoting sustainable developments of the environment. Yetunde also received a Chevening scholarship this year to pursue her master's education in the UK. 

In this episode, Yetunde and Jennifer discuss the motivations behind REES Africa - which operates in 5 states in Nigeria and one state in Ghana (Accra). During the conversation, you will learn what goes into planning rural electrification projects, the importance of partnerships and stakeholder engagement, and of course the irreplaceable role of passion and commitment. 

_

Jamie Margolin is a youth climate activist and the co-founder of This Is Zero Hour. She was one of the main figures in the global climate strike that had over 1 million people worldwide participate in. And oh, she is only 17. 

In this episode, we learn about the motivations that are driving the youth climate movement. We discuss how Jamie manages to balance her work as an activist while being in her final year of high school and dealing with the pressures that come with always being in the public eye in the era of social media.

_

This week on the podcast, Bret Kugelmass - Host of the Titans of Nuclear podcast and Managing Director of the Energy Impact Center - will be guiding us through our first conversation about Nuclear Energy!

In this episode, we learn about the ups and downs in the development timeline of nuclear energy and correct some common misconceptions that have formed over the years about the largely misunderstood energy source. 

_

Joining us this week on the podcast is Dr. Victoria Nalule from Uganda she is a lawyer that specializes in the energy and mining industries of Africa and she is an avid advocate for women’s issues and infrastructural and economic developments in African communities.

On this episode, we dive into the topic of Energy Access, which simply means making sure that everyone has stable and affordable electricity and means to improve their standards of living and reduce their overall carbon footprint.

The Sustainable development goal 7 set by the United Nations aims to lift millions of people out of energy poverty, majority of which are in Sub-Saharan African and that is the region we will be focusing on in this episode. Through our talk, we will discuss the challenges slowing the progress of these goals and make arguments on the best paths forward to provide energy to the people who need it the most. 

___________________________

Jake Corley, CEO, and Co-founder of Wellhub, managing partner of Digital Wildcatters which among other things produces the "oil and gas start-up podcasts", which He co-hosts with his partner Collin. Jake also, owns and operates his own oil-field and from what you'll hear from our conversation, he might be the most natural entrepreneur I've ever spoken to. 

___________________________ 

Helena joins the conversation this week from London, UK; and we have a very interesting conversation about climate change, renewable energy and environmental policy. 

We both discuss the importance of having proper dialogue and educating the general public of the little and big ways that climate change affects us all, in our lives and communities. 

I hope this episode will help you learn a bit more of how to engage people around you in conversation about the energy industry and sustainability. We all have a role to play in creating the kind of future we want to live in, and the only way we can get there is by making meaningful changes in our personal lives and communities. 

Think Globally, Act Locally. 

You can connect with Helena to find more conversation.