In this week’s episode, host Daniel Raimi talks with Lisa Rennels, a PhD candidate at the University of California, Berkeley, about a class of synthetic industrial chemicals used in air-conditioners, refrigerators, and other technologies: hydrofluorocarbons. Rennels discusses the proliferation of these chemicals in recent decades, the cost of hydrofluorocarbon emissions to society, the feedback loop between global warming and increased use of these chemicals for air-conditioning, and global efforts to reduce the emissions of hydrofluorocarbons.

References and recommendations:

“The social costs of hydrofluorocarbons and the benefits from their expedited phase-down” by Tammy Tan, Lisa Rennels, and Bryan Parthum; https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-023-01898-9

“Comprehensive Evidence Implies a Higher Social Cost of CO₂” by Kevin Rennert, Frank Errickson, Brian C. Prest, Lisa Rennels, Richard G. Newell, William Pizer, Cora Kingdon, Jordan Wingenroth, Roger Cooke, Bryan Parthum, David Smith, Kevin Cromar, Delavane Diaz, Frances C. Moore, Ulrich K. Müller, Richard J. Plevin, Adrian E. Raftery, Hana Ševčíková, Hannah Sheets, James Stock, Tammy Tan, Mark Watson, Tony E. Wong, and David Anthoff; https://www.rff.org/publications/journal-articles/comprehensive-evidence-implies-a-higher-social-cost-of-co2/

“The Impossible Will Take a Little While: A Citizen’s Guide to Hope in a Time of Fear” by Paul Rogat Loeb; https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/paul-rogat-loeb/the-impossible-will-take-a-little-while/9780465038589

“Not the End of the World: How We Can Be the First Generation to Build a Sustainable Planet” by Hannah Ritchie; https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/hannah-ritchie/not-the-end-of-the-world/9780316536752/

“Are we the last generation—or the first sustainable one?” TED Talk by Hannah Ritchie; https://www.ted.com/talks/hannah_ritchie_are_we_the_last_generation_or_the_first_sustainable_one

“The High Sierra: A Love Story” by Kim Stanley Robinson; https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/kim-stanley-robinson/the-high-sierra/9780316306812

Estimating the social costs of hydrofluorocarbons, with Lisa Rennels

In this week’s episode, host Daniel Raimi talks with Amanda Giang, an assistant professor at the University of British Columbia, about considering equity in computational models of systems that are at the interface of people and the environment. Giang discusses the steps involved in adapting the models; weighing the benefits of granular, individualized data against considerations of personal privacy; the limitations of modeling and quantitative analysis; and the challenges of communicating with decisionmakers about the complexity and uncertainty of model results.

References and recommendations:

“Equity and modeling in sustainability science: Examples and opportunities throughout the process” by Amanda Giang, Morgan R. Edwards, Sarah M. Fletcher, Rivkah Gardner-Frolick, Rowenna Gryba, Jean-Denis Mathias, Camille Venier-Cambron, John M. Anderies, Emily Berglund, Sanya Carley, Jacob Shimkus Erickson, Emily Grubert, Antonia Hadjimichael, Jason Hill, Erin Mayfield, Destenie Nock, Kimberly Kivvaq Pikok, Rebecca K. Saari, Mateo Samudio Lezcano, Afreen Siddiqi, Jennifer B. Skerker, and Christopher W. Tessum; https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2215688121

“Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands” by Kate Beaton; https://drawnandquarterly.com/books/ducks/

Adding Equity to Environmental Models, with Amanda Giang

In this week’s episode, host Daniel Raimi talks with Andrew Waxman, an assistant professor at the University of Texas at Austin, about carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS), a technology that involves the capture and storage or reuse of carbon dioxide. Waxman discusses the application of CCUS technology for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from power plants and industrial facilities; the  importance of the technology for achieving emissions-reduction goals; and the potential effects of the technology on local air pollution, particularly in communities along the US Gulf Coast.

References and recommendations:

“What are the likely air pollution impacts of carbon capture and storage?” by Andrew Waxman, HR Huber-Rodriquez, and Sheila M. Olmstead; https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=4590320

“Special Report on Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage: CCUS in Clean Energy Transitions” from the International Energy Agency; https://www.iea.org/reports/ccus-in-clean-energy-transitions

“City Limits: Infrastructure, Inequality, and the Future of America’s Highways” by Megan Kimble; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/711708/city-limits-by-megan-kimble/

Will Carbon Capture Make Local Air Pollution Worse?, with Andrew Waxman

In this week’s episode, host Daniel Raimi talks with Holly Caggiano, an assistant professor at the University of British Columbia, and Sara Constantino, an assistant professor at Stanford University, about the preferences of local residents and elected officials for large-scale energy projects in Pennsylvania. Caggiano and Constantino discuss factors that influence public support for renewable energy projects and the occasional misalignment between the perceived preferences and actual preferences of constituents from the perspective of their local elected officials.

References and recommendations:

“Community benefits can build bipartisan support for large-scale energy infrastructure” by Holly Caggiano, Sara M. Constantino, Chris Greig, and Elke U. Weber; https://www.nature.com/articles/s41560-024-01585-9

“The People’s Republic of Valerie, Living Room Edition” by Kristen Kosmas; https://53rdstatepress.org/Kosmas-The-People-s-Republic-of-Valerie-Living-Room-Edition

“Slow Violence and the Environmentalism of the Poor” by Rob Nixon; https://www.hup.harvard.edu/books/9780674072343

“Long Problems: Climate Change and the Challenge of Governing Across Time” by Thomas Hale Jr.; https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691238128/long-problems

“The Overstory” by Richard Powers; https://www.richardpowers.net/the-overstory/

Climate & Community Institute reports; https://climateandcommunity.org/research/

Local Attitudes Toward Energy Projects, with Holly Caggiano and Sara Constantino

The use of economy-wide and integrated assessment modeling to better understand climate change impacts and policy was the focus of discussion in the latest episode of “Environmental Insights: Discussions on Policy and Practice from the Harvard Environmental Economics Program” featuring Karen Fisher-Vanden, the Distinguished Professor of Environmental and Resource Economics and Public Policy at Pennsylvania State University. 

Read a transcript of the podcast: https://www.belfercenter.org/sites/default/files/2024-10/karen-fisher-vanden-podcast-transcript.pdf.

Using Modeling to Better Understand Climate Policy: A Conversation with Karen Fisher-Vanden

In this week’s episode, host Kristin Hayes talks with Jon Krosnick, a professor at Stanford University and a university fellow at Resources for the Future, about the views held by Americans on climate change and climate policies. Krosnick discusses the latest results from the Climate Insights project, which has gauged American public opinion on climate change since 1997; the preferences of Americans for specific climate policies; the views held by Americans about environmental justice; and public demand for federal climate action.

References and recommendations:

“Climate Insights 2024” report by Jon Krosnick et al; 

Surveys of Consumers from the University of Michigan; http://www.sca.isr.umich.edu/

“Is Gen Z less supportive of Israel? We don’t know. Recent polls can’t be trusted” by Ellen Konar, Jon Krosnick, and Joe Wlos; https://www.sfchronicle.com/opinion/openforum/article/israel-american-support-poll-19484618.php

Surveying American Public Opinion on Climate Change, with Jon Krosnick

In this week’s episode, host Kristin Hayes talks with Jesse Buchsbaum, a new research fellow at Resources for the Future, about how consumers respond to changes in electricity prices. Buchsbaum discusses the responsiveness of electricity consumers to prices in the short and long term, the role of pricing in driving long-term changes in consumption habits and investments in electric appliances, the importance of pricing for effective policymaking, and differences in the sensitivity of consumers to price changes depending on income.

References and recommendations:

“Are consumers more responsive to prices in the long run? Evidence from electricity markets” by Jesse Buchsbaum; https://jesse-buchsbaum.com/files/job_market_paper.pdf

“How Long ’Til Black Future Month?” by N. K. Jemisin; https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/n-k-jemisin/how-long-til-black-future-month/9780316491341/

“The Fifth Season” by N. K. Jemisin; https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/n-k-jemisin/the-fifth-season/9780316229296/

“Poverty, by America” by Matthew Desmond; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/675683/poverty-by-america-by-matthew-desmond/

How Consumers Respond to Electricity Prices, with Jesse Buchsbaum

In this week’s episode, host Daniel Raimi talks with Maura Allaire, an assistant professor at Arizona State University, about access to wastewater infrastructure in the United States. Allaire discusses the widespread lack of access to centralized wastewater services; the high failure rates of septic systems, which often serve as substitutes for centralized wastewater systems; and the public health risks that are associated with inadequate wastewater treatment. Allaire also discusses how climate change exacerbates these issues and the importance of regional planning for addressing disparities in access to wastewater infrastructure.

References and recommendations:

“The Sum of Us” by Heather McGhee; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/564989/the-sum-of-us-by-heather-mcghee/

“Waste: One Woman’s Fight Against America’s Dirty Secret” by Catherine Coleman Flowers; https://thenewpress.com/books/waste

Understanding Inequities in Access to Wastewater Systems, Maura Allaire

In this week’s episode, host Daniel Raimi talks with Stephen Jarvis, an assistant professor at the London School of Economics, about local opposition—often called “NIMBYism,” or Not In My Backyard—to renewable energy projects in the United Kingdom and the cost this opposition adds to the clean energy transition. Jarvis discusses the permitting process for renewable energy projects in the United Kingdom, how the local impacts of these projects often outweigh broader societal benefits in the permitting process, and potential solutions to better align local and societal interests for a more efficient and equitable clean energy transition.

References and recommendations:

“The Economic Costs of NIMBYism: Evidence from Renewable Energy Projects” by Stephen Jarvis, https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/abs/10.1086/732801

“Wilding” by Isabella Tree; https://www.panmacmillan.com/authors/isabella-tree/wilding/9781509805105

“The Overstory” by Richard Powers; https://www.richardpowers.net/the-overstory/

“Playground” by Richard Powers; https://www.richardpowers.net/playground/

“Extraction/Abstraction” by Edward Burtynski; https://www.edwardburtynsky.com/bookstore-inventory/extraction-abstraction-2024

What Does NIMBYism Cost Society?, with Stephen Jarvis

In this week’s episode, host Kristin Hayes talks with Pat Layton, director of the Wood Utilization + Design Institute at Clemson University, about the resurgence in constructing buildings with wood and, in particular, with mass timber. Layton discusses the development and adoption of mass timber in the United States, along with the environmental and architectural benefits of integrating mass timber into construction projects. Layton also discusses the manufacturing process for mass timber and the fire resistance and structural strength of the material compared to more mainstream building materials, such as steel and concrete.

References and recommendations:

Woodworks map of mass timber projects; https://www.woodworks.org/resources/mapping-mass-timber/

Mass Timber Business Case Studies; https://www.woodworks.org/resources/mass-timber-business-case-studies/

Cost comparisons of building with mass timber vs other materials; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wIcr0R3w9ZQ

Andy Quattlebaum Outdoor Education Center, a building created with mass timber; https://www.thinkwood.com/construction-projects/andy-quattlebaum-outdoor-education-center

Building projects that use wood and mass timber as the main material; https://www.woodworks.org/award-gallery/

Building with Mass Timber, with Pat Layton

In this week’s episode, host Margaret Walls talks with Seanicaa Edwards Herron, founder and executive director of the Freedmen Heirs Foundation, about challenges facing Black farmers in the United States. Herron discusses historical and systemic barriers that Black farmers have encountered, and continue to encounter, in the US agricultural industry. Their conversation covers access to land, capital, and markets; the importance of government programs that are tailored to support Black farmers; and the mission of the Freedmen Heirs Foundation to bridge gaps in the agricultural industry between Black farmers and the markets that Black farmers tap to sell their products.

References and recommendations:

“Minority Food Producers in the Climate Transition” webinar from Resources for the Future; https://www.rff.org/events/environmental-justice-series/minority-producers-in-the-climate-transition/

Exposure event series from Resources for the Future; https://www.rff.org/topics/environmental-justice/exposure-2024/

Season 3 of “The Heist” podcast; https://publicintegrity.org/inequality-poverty-opportunity/the-heist/theheist-season3/

“Gaining Ground: The Fight for Black Land” film; https://gaininggroundthefilm.com/

Black Farmers in America, with Seanicaa Edwards Herron

Resources Radio is a weekly podcast by Resources for the Future. Each week we talk to leading experts about climate change, electricity, ecosystems, and more, making the latest research accessible to everyone.

Estimating the social costs of hydrofluorocarbons, with Lisa Rennels

Resources Radio

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