On Monday, October 30, our host Gabriel Hilty has the headlines. First, the humanitarian need grows in Gaza. Impacts are felt in Toronto too with protests drawing thousands. In Ontario, updated COVID-19 and flu vaccines roll out today. In Ottawa, some MPs call for more taxes on the profits of fossil fuel companies. Finally, Samina has a book recommendation in Turn the Page!

Humanitarian need grows in Gaza

**Welcome to Episode #250! This represents 250 straight weeks of work on this podcast. We couldn’t have managed without our diligent team: Steve Grumbine, host and head honcho, Andy Kennedy, audio engineer, editor and producer, Virginia Cotts, Julie Alberding, Jonathan Kadmon, Commie John Siener, and Tim O’Neill, who create show notes, art, transcripts, and a whole section of extra information and links to resources.

We have now added a bonus event, Macro ‘n Chill, a weekly Zoom meeting where the community can gather, listen, and discuss the episode. To find us, go to the RP Events Calendar on Real Progressives’ website, realprogressives.org/rp-events-calendar. Click the upcoming Tuesday where you’ll find information and the registration link. The event is usually posted on Saturday after the newest episode is released. If it's not there, check back later. See you next Tuesday!**


This week’s episode is the second half of Steve’s interview with Hamza Hamouchene about his book, Dismantling Green Colonialism: Energy and Climate Justice in the Arab Region.

Steve and Hamza agree on the importance of reckoning with the realities of the current capitalist imperialist system, which has proven to be a failure in addressing the most crucial needs of people and planet. Hamza argues that alternative visions for a better world already exist – he himself is an eco-socialist – but the challenge lies in implementing them and building the necessary alliances and coalitions of working people, both at the national and global levels.

The conversation also delves into the specificities of the Arab region, which has elements of authoritarian and military dictatorships due to its subordinate insertion into the global capitalist economy and its role as a key nodal point in global fossil fuel regimes. Hamza highlights the need for a just energy transition that takes into account the control and ownership of fossil fuel resources and the potential for green renewable energies.

Hamza calls for diversifying tactics and strategies, organizing and building power to challenge imperialism and the decarbonization by dispossession.

Dr. Hamza Hamouchene is a London-based Algerian researcher-activist, commentator, and a founding member of Algeria Solidarity Campaign (ASC), Environmental Justice North Africa (EJNA) and the North African Food Sovereignty Network (Siyada). He is currently the Arab region Programme Coordinator at the Transnational Institute (TNI). His work is focused on issues of extractivism, resources, land and food sovereignty as well as climate, environmental, and energy justice in the Arab region.

@BenToumert on Twitter

Dismantling Green Colonialism Part 2 with Hamza Hamouchene

On Friday, November 24, our host Gabriel Hilty has the headlines. First, the blast on the American side of the Niagara Falls border to Canada kills two people. New details on the Rainbow Bridge reopening with terrorism ruled out. In climate news, a new report says the oil and gas sector need to slash emissions to have a chance to meet climate goals. Also, the coverage of the escalation in the Middle East is creating rifts in journalism. An investigation says CTV and parent Bell Media suppress critical coverage of Israel’s war on Gaza.Finally, Samina has a book recommendation this week’s in Turn the Page!

Rainbow Bridge reopens after vehicle explosion

This week on Full Circle we again will be covering 3 topics, and, of course, we continue to keep our eyes and ears on Palestine. On tonight’s show, we’ll hear from a protest in Fairfield CA, at the Travis air force base where Code Pink and Youth 4 Palestine protesters demanding a ceasefire blocked entrances to the military base during the morning commute. And JR Valrey and Block Report Radio honor Black History Month with an interview with  internationally known historian and author Gerald Horne discussing how the energy being generated against the genocide in Gaza can be used to stop the genocide in the Congo and the International Court of Justice case in south Africa. To close out the show, we will bring it back to Antioch CA, as Antioch Mayor Lamar Hernandez Thorpe signs the Pacific Environment’s Mayors Challenge, pledging no further investments of city funds into fossil fuel infrastructure.

Full Circle 02-09-2024 Palestine and Congo plus Pacific Environment Mayor's Challenge

20240415 - KMcRadio - KMC Yates Martin Kavolik

26 May - Brown to Green

In this episode, we explore the controversial topic of carbon capture and storage (CCS) with insights from various experts and activists. We begin with excerpts from Taylor Brobrey’s keynote at the 2024 Bioneers Conference, where he shares his personal experiences growing up in North Dakota amidst the coal and oil industries. Next, we hear from climate thinker Gabrielle Walker, who discusses the necessity of carbon removals in her TED talk. Finally, energy expert and environmental activist Morey Wolfson joins Jack Eidt to debunk the myths surrounding CCS and discuss the reality of its implementation and cost. Tune in to gain a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and false promises of carbon capture and storage.

Most of us understand we are in a global climate emergency. Data confirmed last month was the hottest May on record, putting the Earth on a 12-month streak of record-breaking temperatures. What we need is to immediately transition away from the burning of fossil fuels toward renewable power sources, but also a focus on more efficient energy use, and most importantly, a comprehensive plan for massive conservation and rethinking the way we do business. But global corporations want to continue with their present business model focused on coal, oil, fossil gas, ethanol, and industrial agro-fueled biodiesel. And the way they do it is advancing “solutions” like Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage.

For an extended interview and other benefits, become an EcoJustice Radio patron at https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio 

Clip Taylor Brobry from Bioneers: https://youtu.be/17NNiLXQoaM?si=SC4qROI6KlpuAO8v 

What You Need to Know About Carbon Removal | Gabrielle Walker | TED
Clip from TED Talk Gabrielle Walker: https://youtu.be/60e6u_1TEIs?si=Rm7HXkPPn1S51p9m

Resources/Articles:
Info on Project Tundra in North Dakota: https://www.projecttundrand.com/ 
“The carbon capture crux: Lessons learned,” Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis
https://ieefa.org/resources/carbon-capture-crux-lessons-learned

Taylor Brorby [https://taylorbrorby.com/] grew in the dynamic shortgrass prairie of western North Dakota, a youth that coincided with the brutal physical and psychic scarring of his surroundings by the coal and oil industry, a fate not made any easier by being a young gay boy enthralled by classical music, art, fishing, and poetry. From here, Taylor became a poet, writer and dedicated activist, an eloquent critic of the fossil fuel industry, penning, among other works, the memoir: Boys and Oil: Growing Up Gay in a Fractured Land, the essays in Civil Disobedience, and co-editing: Fracture: Essays, Poems, and Stories on Fracking in America. 

Morey Wolfson has spent his career in energy and environmental policy. He is a Former Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) regulator, National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) employee, and governors’ energy policy advisor.


Jack Eidt is an urban planner, environmental journalist, and climate organizer, as well as award-winning fiction writer. He is Co-Founder of SoCal 350 Climate Action and Executive Producer of EcoJustice Radio. He is also Founder and Publisher of WilderUtopia [https://wilderutopia.com], a website dedicated to the question of Earth sustainability, finding society-level solutions to environmental, community, economic, transportation and energy needs.




Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/ 
Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/ 
Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio
PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url  
Executive Producer and Host: Jack Eidt
Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats
Episode 224
Photo credit: Kanenori on Pixabay

The Expensive Folly of Carbon Capture and Storage

Andreas Malm works in The Department of Human Geography at Lund University. He’s a scholar of human ecology and environmental history and has written several books, including The Progress of this Storm, Fossil Capital, How to Blow Up A Pipeline and White Skin, Black Fuel. 

Wim Carton works in the same department as a human geographer. The main focus of his research is the relationship between society and nature and how society-nature relations are informed and changed by ecological crisis. Right now he’s writing about culture, political economy and climate action, with a special emphasis on the promises of carbon removal.

In this conversation we talk about their new book Overshoot (https://www.versobooks.com/en-ca/products/3131-overshoot), the first of two books about the state of the climate crisis and the question of whether cutting emissions from fossil fuels is a purely technical or primarily political challenge. The second book will be called The Long Heat, which is a title that gives a name to the era that we are now entering, where powerful state and corporate interests continue to block even meagre climate action, making loss, damage, suffering and, basically, mass sacrifice seem inevitable, even somehow normal.  

Now, after the election of Donald Trump to a second term as US president, it’s clear that “the days of thinking that the US will ever be a reliable partner on addressing global warming are over,' in the words of New York Times reporter Coral Davenport. It’s hard to maintain hope in this moment, and that question of hope is something that comes up a surprising amount in Overshoot. Malm and Carton are suspicious of the palliative rhetoric of hope in the climate movement and how it tends to inoculate more active feelings of anger, frustration or grief. That said, they are a lot more suspicious of the rhetoric of hopelessness presented by those who are resigned to 1.5, 2, or 3 degrees of global heating. Overshoot is based on the notion that, since there is no reasonable hope of cutting emissions in time, we have to plan, now, to hurtle past our climate targets and pray that technology, adaptation and a little bit of luck will let us, after we’ve blown our carbon budget, bring things back within the realm of safety. 

The deferral of the burden is clear, but Carton and Malm break it down in a way that explains more fully how overshoot allows fossil capital to endlessly defer stranding its assets, to completely avoid any real disruption. This means that, as Wim puts it, resource radicals and ecosocialists who see a massive transformation as the only way forward have to bet, now, on the possibility of “rupture” as a response to business as usual. 

As this episode drops, representatives at COP29 will be debating whether or not to pick up their dismal efforts where they left off at COP28, when fossil fuels were finally identified as the root cause of the climate crisis after decades of dicking around. This absurd situation is captured nicely by Wim: “nothing really happens and we're constantly adding more and more carbon to the atmosphere.” which means that, by definition, “we're actually… going to exceed these targets.” Whether we’re ready for it or not blowing past the targets will come with extremely severe risks. Malm says the “only way to avoid the [situation] spinning completely out of control is to go after the drivers of these disasters, and that is the constant, ongoing investment and reinvestment in fossil fuels that is happening everywhere.”


Wim Carton and Andreas Malm want a radical break to overcome the resignation to overshoot

Sarah Marie Wiebe is an Assistant Professor in the School of Public Administration at the University of Victoria whose research and solidarity work focuses on community development and environmental justice. When we last spoke on the pod, we looked at her writing broadly, but this time around we’re marking the release of her fantastic new book Hot Mess: Mothering Through a Code Red Climate Emergency, from Fernwood Publishing. 

Hot Mess is a remarkable book, giving readers a nuanced effort to navigate a temporality of disaster, whether the slow disaster of air pollution or the searing trauma of wildfire, while working to manifest the kinds of caring relations that could safeguard the future. It’s not an impersonal text, in the sense that it’s not afraid to let in the emotional avalanche that the lived experience of crisis implies. What happens in and after the moment an emergency is declared? How is the decision made and an emergency response sustained?

Sarah’s book isn’t concerned with these questions in the abstract, it offers a detailed account of exactly how and why emergencies are declared, and with what effects. The main crisis, and it is really many crises, that Wiebe takes on in Hot Mess is, of course, the all-encompassing climate crisis. Focusing on the feeling of raising a child in the content of an approaching climate breakdown, Hot Mess lets the reader try to come to terms with the reality that “climate change,” Wiebe tells us, “affects all stages of gestation for mothers.”

We talk about her fieldwork for the book, her defiance of certain norms of academic comportment (especially during her difficult pregnancy), and the question of which medium could potentially function the most effectively for communicating the uncanny impressions left by climate impacts.

Sarah Marie Wiebe cares about care, insisting we fight climate change through love and reconnection

In this episode, we delve into the devastating wildfires in Los Angeles, examining the underlying causes and the lessons we can learn. Economics Professor Richard Wolff critiques the blame game often played by political figures and industries, emphasizing instead the systemic issues rooted in profit-driven motives. We explore the impact of climate change and the urgent need for systemic change to prioritize safety over profit. Additionally, we gain insights from Dr. Michael Mann on the scientific community's understanding of climate change's role in exacerbating such disasters. The episode also touches on Lakota spirituality with David Little Elk, offering a unique perspective on humanity's connection to the elements and the importance of respecting nature.

For an extended interview and other benefits, become an EcoJustice Radio patron at https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio 

Sources:
Wolff Responds: "The Lesson California's Fires Should Teach Us" Dated January 15, 2025 from Democracy at Work
https://x.com/profwolff/status/1879582067283132509 

Michael Mann on SiriusXM with Zerlina Maxwell Discussing California Wildfires (JAN 13 2025)

https://youtu.be/bH4bWFON--Y?si=u0avZazGFoqFaU2x 

David Little Elk Lakota Spirituality Fire People

https://youtu.be/n6bCO6_g7LM?si=ggho-tLq4Hp0dRhA 


Richard D. Wolff [https://www.rdwolff.com/] is Professor of Economics Emeritus, University of Massachusetts, Amherst and is currently a Visiting Professor in the Graduate Program in International Affairs of the New School University, New York City. Prof Wolff is the co-founder of Democracy at Work [https://www.democracyatwork.info/] and host of their nationally syndicated show Economic Update.

Dr. Michael E. Mann [https://michaelmann.net/] is Presidential Distinguished Professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Science at the University of Pennsylvania, with a secondary appointment in the Annenberg School for Communication. He also serves as Vice Provost for Climate Science, Policy, and Action and Director of the Penn Center for Science, Sustainability, and the Media (PCSSM).

David Little Elk, [https://wolakota7.com/] an Itazipco-Sicangu Lakota Sioux, is a Lakota Language and Spirituality Teacher, and a Spiritual Advisor and Consultant.



Jack Eidt is an urban planner, environmental journalist, and climate organizer, as well as award-winning fiction writer. He is Co-Founder of SoCal 350 Climate Action and Executive Producer of EcoJustice Radio. He writes a column on PBS SoCal called High & Dry [https://www.pbssocal.org/people/high-dry]. He is also Founder and Publisher of WilderUtopia [https://wilderutopia.com], a website dedicated to the question of Earth sustainability, finding society-level solutions to environmental, community, economic, transportation and energy needs.




Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/ 
Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/ 
Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio
PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url  
Executive Producer and Host: Jack Eidt
Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats
Episode 246
Photo credit: Josh Field via Pexels

Climate Crisis Ignites: Why L.A.'s Fires Are a Wake-Up Call

We pay tribute to the late Mike Davis to explore the ongoing ecological crises facing Southern California and the socio-political dynamics that shape our responses to disaster. This is an intellectual tour de force as Davis goes deep in this recording from 1995 at the architectural school SCI-Arc, where he taught at the time. He outlines the history of damage caused by natural disasters in Southern California. Popular culture seems fascinated with the destruction of Los Angeles, and most recent events have breathed life into that narrative. 

Support the Podcast via PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url 

Davis discusses the complexity of California’s Mediterranean climate, arguing for a new “environmental epistemology.” He calls for a rethinking of California’s resource and disaster planning. Noting the extreme hydroclimatic shifts throughout California history, he suggests a disruption of capitalist hydraulic civilization in California is inevitable–and here we are. We are in serious need of an environmental rethink in any rebuilding–or rewilding–plans.

For an extended interview and other benefits, become an EcoJustice Radio patron at https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio 

More Mike Davis: https://wilderutopia.com/ecojustice-radio/tribute-to-the-late-urban-history-provocateur-mike-davis/

Sources:
Full show of Mike Davis 1995 Presentation from SCI-Arc https://youtu.be/evJpgKQ6YWU?si=oPJ_rzpI-45oIHys 

Mike Davis, who passed away in 2022, was a writer and urban theorist who is most known for his work demythologizing the fractured wild-urban landscape of Southern California. Once a meat cutter and a truck driver, he was Professor Emeritus at University of California, Riverside, a Macarthur Fellow, and the author of more than 20 books. He is best known for his investigations of power and social class in works such as City of Quartz: Excavating the Future in Los Angeles (1990) and Late Victorian Holocausts (2001). In this show we focus on his book, “The Ecology of Fear: Los Angeles and the Imagination of Disaster.”


Jack Eidt is an urban planner, environmental journalist, and climate organizer, as well as award-winning fiction writer. He is Co-Founder of SoCal 350 Climate Action and Executive Producer of EcoJustice Radio. He writes a column on PBS SoCal called High & Dry [https://www.pbssocal.org/people/high-dry]. He is also Founder and Publisher of WilderUtopia [https://wilderutopia.com], a website dedicated to the question of Earth sustainability, finding society-level solutions to environmental, community, economic, transportation and energy needs.


Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/ 
Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/ 
Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio
PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url  
Executive Producer and Host: Jack Eidt
Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats
Episode 247
Photo credit: Ecology of Fear cover

Mike Davis On Southern California’s Landscape of Disaster

As we head into times where rising temperatures, superstorms, and mega-fires dominate the headlines, what has happened to our disaster-averting solutions? In this episode, we explore 'The Carbon Conundrum' and rethink our relationship with nature. 

Join host Jack Eidt as he features a discussion with post-humanist philosopher Báyò Akómoláfé and environmental leader and author Paul Hawken, moderated by Alex Forrester, Board Member of the Schumacher Center for a New Economics and Co-Founder of Rising Tide capital. They delve into the failures of current climate strategies, the pitfalls of solutionism, and the importance of reconnecting with Traditional Ecological Knowledge. This enlightening conversation challenges listeners to reconsider their approaches to environmentalism and climate action.
 
Support the Podcast via PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url

Paul Hawken [https://paulhawken.com/] starts ecological businesses, writes about nature and commerce. He has written nine books, including six national and NYT bestsellers: ‘Growing a Business’, ‘The Next Economy’, ‘The Ecology of Commerce’, ‘Blessed Unrest’, ‘Drawdown’, and ‘Regeneration’. His latest book, ‘Carbon, The Book of Life’, is available from Penguin RandomHouse in February 2025.

Paul is the founder of Project Drawdown and Project Regeneration (https://regeneration.org/), which is the world’s largest, most complete listing and network of solutions to the climate crisis. 

Báyò Akómoláfé  Ph.D., [https://www.bayoakomolafe.net/] rooted with the Yoruba people in a more-than-human world, is a posthumanist thinker, poet, teacher, public intellectual, essayist, and author of two books, These Wilds Beyond our Fences: Letters to My Daughter on Humanity’s Search for Home (North Atlantic Books) and We Will Tell our Own Story: The Lions of Africa Speak. Bayo Akomolafe is the visionary founder of The Emergence Network, a planet-wide networking project and inquiry at the edges of the Anthropocene that seeks to convene new kinds of responsivities, sensuous solidarities, and experimental practices for a posthumanist parapolitics. He currently lectures at Pacifica Graduate Institute, California. He sits on the Board of many organizations.

A frequent keynote speaker and guest lecturer, Dr. Akomolafe’s critically popular expression, “the times are urgent, let us slow down,” with which he attempts to frame new concepts (such as ontofugitivity, the Afrocene, iatropolitics, curapoiesis, white syncopation, ecocognitive assemblage theory, postactivism and parapolitics) that reframe and renaturalize human action, agency, and responsibility in an immanent, agonistic worlding of possibilities for life-death. 

Dr. Akomolafe is a Member of the Club of Rome and an Ambassador for the Wellbeing Economy Alliance. He is currently writing his third book, ‘An Ocean of Milk: Morality, Desire, and the Monster at the Edge of the World’.



Jack Eidt is an urban planner, environmental journalist, and climate organizer, as well as award-winning fiction writer. He is Co-Founder of SoCal 350 Climate Action and Executive Producer of EcoJustice Radio. He writes a column on PBS SoCal called High & Dry [https://www.pbssocal.org/people/high-dry]. He is also Founder and Publisher of WilderUtopia [https://wilderutopia.com], a website dedicated to the question of Earth sustainability, finding society-level solutions to environmental, community, economic, transportation and energy needs.


Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/ 
Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/ 
Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio
PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url  
Executive Producer and Host: Jack Eidt
Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats
Episode 249
Photo credit: Carbon book cover

The Carbon Conundrum: Rethinking Our Relationship with Nature

In this episode, we welcome Rebecca John, an investigative climate reporter at the Climate Investigation Center [https://climateinvestigations.org/] and the news outlet DeSmog. She has uncovered a series of alarming revelations about the oil industry's manipulation of public perception and climate science. We delve into the historical context of the oil and gas lobby, exploring how entities like the Western States Petroleum Association (WSPA) have influenced research and public opinion since the 1950s. From the origins of the Air Pollution Foundation to the ongoing battle against climate change, Rebecca sheds light on the intricate web of misinformation and the urgent need for public action.
 
Support the Podcast via PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url 

Archival documents published by The Guardian and DeSmog show that the Air Pollution Foundation  — the front group WSPA created as a means of delaying clean air regulation implementation aimed at curbing deadly smog emissions in Los Angeles and statewide —  led to the discovery of climate change. WSPA was the top funder of the Air Pollution Foundation, whose research concluded that atmospheric carbon could “ultimately prove of considerable significance to civilization.” 


For an extended interview and other benefits, become an EcoJustice Radio patron at https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio 

Resources:

Revealed: Big Oil Told 70 Years Ago That Fossil Fuel Emissions Could Impact ‘Civilization’ - DeSmog
https://www.desmog.com/2024/11/12/revealed-big-oil-told-70-years-ago-that-fossil-fuel-emissions-could-impact-civilization/ 


Rebecca John is a Research Fellow at the Climate Investigations Center [https://climateinvestigations.org/who_we_are/]. She is also a freelance investigative journalist and award-winning documentary filmmaker. As a Producer and Director of the acclaimed “Extreme Oil” / “Curse of Oil” [https://topdocumentaryfilms.com/the-curse-of-oil/] series for PBS /BBC. 

The Climate Investigations Center (CIC) was established in 2014 to monitor the individuals, corporations, trade associations, political organizations and front groups who work to delay the implementation of sound energy and environmental policies that are necessary in the face of ongoing climate crisis.


Jack Eidt is an urban planner, environmental journalist, and climate organizer, as well as award-winning fiction writer. He is Co-Founder of SoCal 350 Climate Action and Executive Producer of EcoJustice Radio. He writes a column on PBS SoCal called High & Dry [https://www.pbssocal.org/people/high-dry]. He is also Founder and Publisher of WilderUtopia [https://wilderutopia.com], a website dedicated to the question of Earth sustainability, finding society-level solutions to environmental, community, economic, transportation and energy needs.




Podcast Website: http://ecojusticeradio.org/ 
Podcast Blog: https://www.wilderutopia.com/category/ecojustice-radio/ 
Support the Podcast: Patreon https://www.patreon.com/ecojusticeradio
PayPal https://www.paypal.com/donate/?hosted_button_id=LBGXTRM292TFC&source=url  
Executive Producer and Host: Jack Eidt
Engineer and Original Music: Blake Quake Beats
Episode 253
Photo credit: Rebecca John

Seeing Through the Smog: How Big Oil Manipulates Climate Science with Rebecca John

Discover key takeaways from Ember's groundbreaking Global Electricity Review 2025! A major milestone has been reached: low-carbon sources now generate over 40% of global electricity. This track breaks down what this pivotal shift means for the worldwide energy transition, our journey towards sustainability, and the accelerating decarbonization of our power systems.

Key Insights from Ember's Global Electricity Review 2025:

🌍 A Historic Turning Point: Over 40% Low-Carbon Power Globally
In 2024, low-carbon power (renewables like solar & wind, plus nuclear) achieved a landmark 40.9% share of global electricity. This is its highest proportion since the 1940s, a remarkable feat considering today's electricity system is 50 times larger. This signals clear and accelerating momentum in global power sector decarbonization.

☀️ Solar Power: The Undisputed Engine of the Energy Transition
Solar energy is the primary force driving this transformation. It was the largest source of new electricity generation globally for the third year running, adding an impressive 474 TWh in 2024 (a 29% year-on-year growth), and has been the fastest-growing electricity source for two decades. Solar generation has doubled in just three years to 2,131 TWh (enough to power all of India!), with global solar capacity hitting 2 Terawatts (TW). Solar is critical for meeting rising demand and displacing fossil fuels.

📈 Rising Demand & New Structural Drivers: A Complex Energy Landscape
While clean energy surges, global electricity demand also grew significantly by 4.0% in 2024, exceeding 30,000 TWh. This growth is driven by heatwaves and, increasingly, by new structural factors: the expansion of Electric Vehicles (EVs), heat pumps, and energy-intensive data centers (for AI and cryptocurrency), whose combined impact on demand growth has more than doubled in just five years. The energy transition must rapidly adapt to these evolving consumption patterns.

⛽ The Fossil Fuel Outlook: Nuance and an Approaching Decline
Global fossil fuel generation rose by 1.4% in 2024, leading to record power sector emissions. However, Ember's report clarifies this was primarily due to hotter temperatures increasing cooling demand. Without this weather impact, the rise would have been minimal (0.2%), as clean energy (927 TWh new generation in 2024) covered 96% of other demand growth. The crucial insight: fossil fuel generation faces a structural decline. Ember’s Managing Director states, "the era of fossil growth is coming to an end."

🔋 The Path Forward: Flexibility, Advanced Storage, and Global Collaboration
Integrating more variable renewables like solar and wind requires enhanced flexibility. Battery storage is a key enabler, with costs falling (lithium-ion pack prices down 20% in 2024) and record installations (69 GW in 2024, nearly doubling total capacity). This makes concepts like 24-hour solar power more feasible. The clean energy deployment in major economies like China and India is also pivotal for a sustained global decline in fossil fuel use.

💬 Reflecting on Our Energy Future
Ember's 2025 review highlights significant progress, especially from solar, but also considerable challenges from rising demand and the need for global cooperation. The fossil fuel era is waning, but our choices today will determine the pace and success of this vital transition.

🔗 Learn More & Explore the Data:
Read the Full Ember Global Electricity Review 2025 Report: https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/global-electricity-review-2025/
Discover AI-powered Cleantech Insights with SolarShift GPT: https://chatgpt.com/g/g-681ef70b99188191a492878edde49e60-solarshift-gpt-ai-powered-cleantech-insights

Clean Power Reaches 40% Global Electricity Review 2025

First Voice Media is building a lasting institution for women, people of color, and under-resourced communities to learn media skills and gain access to radio as a means of empowerment using mass communications and art.

Members of First Voice Media produce, write, host, and engineer Full Circle, a cultural affairs radio magazine which showcases personal views, interviews, feature stories, and live performances from our community. Airing on Friday at 7pm on KPFA 94.1, all content comes from members of First Voice Media and reaches all across northern and central California.

Welcome to your weekly sustainability shot, ESGpresso — a podcast brought to you by NordSIP.

🎙️ From Sound to Systems: The Journey from Music to Artificial Intelligence

Music has always played a central role in my life. I started playing guitar at 19—not to become a musician, but to connect with creativity in a hands-on way. That same curiosity now drives my work in artificial intelligence, engineering, and technological innovation.

What began as a private SoundCloud account for listening and inspiration is now transforming into a platform for something new:
The launch of my AI & Technology Podcast.

🎧 New Podcast on Artificial Intelligence, Engineering & the Future of Work

As an AI engineer and systems thinker, I explore the deep transformation underway at the intersection of:

Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning

Digital Engineering & Cloud Technologies

Sustainable Innovation & Future Skills

Neuroscience, Creativity & Human Potential

The podcast—available here on SoundCloud and on Spotify—features thought leadership, expert interviews, and practical insights for engineers, technologists, and future-minded thinkers.

Whether you're interested in:

Real-world AI use cases,

How to thrive in a world shaped by automation,

Interdisciplinary insights from engineering, psychology, and design.

Or building a future where tech serves people, not the other way around –
this podcast is designed for you.

🌐 Who am I?

AI Engineer | Cloud Architect | Battery Tech Innovator

Deep interest in cognitive science, systems thinking, and transformational technologies.

Passionate about bridging human values and technological progress.

EcoJustice Radio presents environmental and climate stories from a social justice frame, featuring voices not necessarily heard on mainstream media.

Our purpose is to amplify community voices, broaden the reach of grassroots-based movements, and inspire action. We investigate solutions for social, environmental, and climate issues with an eye to advance human health, steward wild landscapes, and solve the climate crisis across the USA and the world.

Featured weekly on KPFK Los Angeles and KPFT Houston, and found on all major podcast apps. We are nationally syndicated through the Pacifica Network and PRX and heard on public radio stations across the US and downloaded in over 25 countries.

Co-hosts Jack Eidt, Carry Kim, and Jessica Aldridge present a broad range of perspectives: land defenders and water protectors; Indigenous leaders, front/fenceline community spokespeople; youth organizers; ecosystem and land stewards; regenerative farmers and permaculture specialists; spiritual and faith leaders; environmental health advocates and practitioners; documentary filmmakers; climate scientists; and political decision makers.

EcoJustice Radio [http://EcoJusticeRadio.org] is produced by SoCal350.org since 2017. 

Tune in live to KPFK Radio Thursdays from 4 to 5 PM (PT) at 90.7 FM Los Angeles, 98.7 FM Santa Barbara, 93.7 FM North San Diego, 99.5 FM Ridgecrest-China Lake, or KPFK.org. 

We also are featured on KPFT Houston from 4 to 5 PM (CT) at 90.1 FM or KPFT.org and other public radio stations on the Pacifica Network.

Toronto Metropolitan University's campus and community multi-media hub. Listen at 1280 AM or online at metradio.ca

Obliterating confusion, amplifying truth, and pursuing clarity. "Binge thinking" at the speed of sound.

Macroeconomics has never been so ... delish!  Macro and Cheese explores the progressive movement through the lens of Modern Monetary Theory, with hot and irreverent political takes, spotlights in activism, and the razor sharp musings of Real Progressives Founder and host Steve Grumbine.  The cheese will flow as experts come in for a full, four course deep dive into the hot queso. 

Comfort Food for Thought!

This podcast features interviews with a variety of theorists, artists and activists from across the globe. It's guided by the search for radical solutions to crises that are inherent to colonial capitalism. To this end, I hope to keep facilitating conversations that bring together perspectives on the liberatory and transformative power of care, in particular.

New tracks tagged #fossilfuels