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In this episode, host Margaret Walls talks with Jade Stevens, founder and executive director of 40 Acre Conservation League, a Black-led nonprofit land trust in California. The organization, named after the historic promise of “40 acres and a mule” given to formerly enslaved Black Americans after the Civil War, honors the legacy of the promise by expanding land stewardship and outdoor recreation throughout California. A complementary objective of the land trust focuses on wildfire prevention and forest preservation, which involves extensive efforts to thin out overcrowded trees and restore wildlife. Despite challenges in site acquisition and dense tree regrowth, Stevens notes that maintaining outdoor space creates lasting improvements to quality of life for nearby communities. By merging the two aims of conserving land and expanding public lands, 40 Acre Conservation League aims to make the great outdoors more accessible to urban families in California while protecting the ecosystems within it. References and recommendations: 40 Acre Conservation League; https://www.40acreleague.org/ “The Wild” podcast with Chris Morgan; https://www.thewildpod.org/ Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

In this episode, host Kristin Hayes is joined by Beia Spiller, a fellow and director of the transportation program at Resources for the Future (RFF), to explore new RFF research findings on critical minerals. (Note that this podcast episode is a sneak preview of a forthcoming report! We will add a link to the report in the show notes once the research has been released on the RFF website. Stay tuned.) To understand contemporary market dynamics for critical minerals, Spiller says that one must understand the history of mineral extraction in the United States. With high operational costs, explained in part by environmental regulations and workforce limitations, and with overseas firms bypassing many of these expenses, the US supply of critical minerals lies at the intersection of national security and global market tensions. While critical mineral policies in recent history have taken varied approaches—bilateral, multilateral, plurilateral, and more—evaluating the efficacy and implications of these policies is key to understanding which mechanisms actually advance US goals. Spiller argues that effectively addressing this “critical” issue requires a clear prioritization of policy objectives and concerns. References and recommendations: Stay tuned for the forthcoming report on critical minerals! The Critical Minerals Research Lab is now open for applications through May 31: https://www.rff.org/news/press-releases/critical-minerals-research-lab-now-accepting-applications/ Critical Minerals Research Lab; https://www.rff.org/topics/transportation/critical-minerals/critical-minerals-research-lab/ “Burn Book” by Kara Swisher; https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Burn-Book/Kara-Swisher/9781982163907 “Future of Travel: Is It Boom or Bust Time for EVs?” featuring Beia Spiller as a guest on the “Pivot” podcast hosted by Kara Switcher and Scott Galloway; https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/future-of-travel-is-it-boom-or-bust-time-for-evs/id1073226719?i=1000660297338 Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

For this week’s episode, host Daniel Raimi is joined by David M. Hart, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) and professor emeritus at George Mason University, to discuss the making and findings of CFR’s Global Energy Innovation Index. According to Hart, energy innovation—and policy that supports it—is crucial to addressing climate change. Through comprehensive data synthesis, Hart and his team created an index for 39 countries that evaluates a nation’s capacity to support energy innovation across three categories: the policy environment for investment, the market friendliness for new technologies, and the production of knowledge via research and patents. Results show that while Scandinavian countries take the lead overall in the index, the United States scores strongly in the policy and market measures and leaves room for improvement in terms of research and patents. The index provides a global lens on energy innovation efforts, Hart notes, as one country’s strides in technology can help spur innovation internationally. References and recommendations: “Global Energy Innovation Index” by David M. Hart, Colin Cunliff, Mia Beams, and Akkshath Subrahmanian; https://www.cfr.org/reports/global-energy-innovation-index Biathlon event in the Olympics; https://www.olympics.com/en/milano-cortina-2026/sports/biathlon “Semiosis” by Sue Burke; https://torpublishinggroup.com/semiosis/ “A New (and Controversial) Approach to Climate Policy, with Varun Sivaram” from Resources Radio; https://www.resources.org/resources-radio/resources-radio-a-new-and-controversial-approach-to-climate-policy-with-varun-sivaram/ Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

In this episode, host Margaret Walls talks with Kevin Stiroh, a senior fellow at Resources for the Future and a former senior advisor at the Federal Reserve. Pulling from his extensive career in the financial sector, Stiroh expounds on how financial institutions evaluate climate-related risks and the analysis necessary to address risks across loans, insurance, and investment portfolios. Stiroh emphasizes that sound banking practices require active collaboration between research and policy to navigate financial risks. As calculations of the macroeconomic impacts of climate change evolve, past research may be less relevant and accurate than newer studies on climate change as sources of information about climate-related financial risk and shocks. Effective risk management is in a bank’s best interest, Stiroh notes, and requires rigorous, credible economic research that informs durable policy solutions. References and recommendations: “The Evolving View of Climate-Related Financial Risks in the US Financial Sector” by Kevin Stiroh; https://www.resources.org/common-resources/the-evolving-view-of-climate-related-financial-risks-in-the-us-financial-sector/ “The Effects of Climate Change–Related Risks on Banks: A Literature Review” by Olivier de Bandt, Laura-Chloé Kuntz, Nora Pankratz, Fulvio Pegoraro, Haakon Solheim, Gregory Sutton, Azusa Takeyama, and Fan Dora Xia; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/joes.12665 Work from the Network of Central Banks and Supervisors for Greening the Financial System; https://www.ngfs.net/en Books and readings on Antarctic explorers Robert Falcon Scott (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Falcon_Scott) and Ernest Shackleton (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernest_Shackleton) Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

In this episode, Destenie Nock, an associate professor at Carnegie Mellon University, joins host Daniel Raimi to discuss measures utilities and policymakers can take to better capture energy-accessibility and affordability metrics. Whereas energy data is often specific to energy providers, Nock argues that evaluating energy at a household level enables a more holistic understanding of energy usage and the energy transition. With electricity rates on the rise, accurate energy consumption data is central to ensuring comfortable temperatures in more homes. Progress in energy affordability, Nock notes, requires a multifaceted policy approach that integrates energy-equity and wellbeing metrics into measures of success. Energy affordability is not a standalone problem, and decisionmakers must recognize its ties with other cost-of-living issues and the need for inclusive data to effectively address energy burdens. References and recommendations: “Justice as a Measure of Energy Transition Success” by Destenie Nock; https://www.nature.com/articles/s41560-025-01870-1 “Evicted” by Matthew Desmond; https://evictedbook.com/ “Unveiling Hidden Energy Poverty, with Destenie Nock” from Resources Radio; www.resources.org/resources-radio/unveiling-hidden-energy-poverty-with-destenie-nock/ Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

In this episode, host Kristin Hayes sits down with Resources for the Future (RFF) Senior Fellow Bryan Hubbell to look back at Hubbell’s public-service career at the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). As an environmental economist, Hubbell led efforts to integrate the social sciences into EPA’s environmental policy research and establish methods to calculate the benefits of clean air. Under his leadership, EPA developed the Environmental Benefits Mapping and Analysis Program, which has provided an accessible and rigorous way to evaluate the impacts of air-pollution regulations. The quantification and monetization of air-quality benefits are foundational to benefit-cost analyses, which Hubbell stresses are crucial to well-informed policy decisionmaking. Hubbell maintains that recent efforts to remove benefit calculations from federal benefit-cost analysis practices do not stack up against the years of stringent testing and research invested into creating these measures. References and recommendations: “If/Then: Ignoring the Benefits of Air Pollution Regulations Will Lead to Worse Policy Decisions” by Bryan Hubbell and Alan Krupnick; https://www.resources.org/common-resources/ifthen-ignoring-the-benefits-of-air-pollution-regulations-will-lead-to-worse-policy-decisions/ “How the US Environmental Protection Agency Got It Wrong About Monetizing Benefits of Air Pollution Regulations” by Bryan Hubbell and Alan Krupnick; https://www.rff.org/publications/reports/how-the-us-environmental-protection-agency-got-it-wrong-about-monetizing-benefits-of-air-pollution-regulations/ “Benefits and Costs of the Clean Air Act 1990–2020” from the US Environmental Protection Agency; https://www.epa.gov/clean-air-act-overview/benefits-and-costs-clean-air-act-1990-2020-report-documents-and-graphics “Estimating the Public Health Benefits of Proposed Air Pollution Regulations” from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; https://www.nationalacademies.org/publications/10511 “Particles of Truth: A Story of Discovery, Controversy, and the Fight for Healthy Air” by C. Arden Pope III and Douglas W. Dockery; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/771621/particles-of-truth-by-c-arden-pope-iii-and-douglas-w-dockery-foreword-by-gina-mccarthy/ “The Heat Will Kill You First: Life and Death on a Scorched Planet” by Jeff Goodell; https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/jeff-goodell/the-heat-will-kill-you-first/9780316497558/ Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

For this week’s episode, host Daniel Raimi is joined by Deputy Executive Director of the Energy for Growth Hub Katie Auth to examine the significance of shutting down the Power Africa program, which had been sponsored by the US Agency for International Development (USAID), along with related implications for international energy development and energy access. Auth notes how the sudden shuttering of Power Africa (and USAID) has weakened US credibility and raised confusion for countries that had been promised energy assistance via Power Africa. Auth identifies a chance for the international-development community to not simply rebuild this and other programs in coming years, but to move forward by emulating the positive, collaborative elements of Power Africa in future energy development. References and recommendations: “High Energy Planet” podcast from the Energy for Growth Hub; https://energyforgrowth.org/article/high-energy-planet-all-episodes/ “Demon Copperhead” by Barbara Kingsolver; https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/barbara-kingsolver Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

For this week’s podcast episode, host Kristin Hayes chats with Resources for the Future (RFF) Fellow Milan Elkerbout alongside Massachusetts Institute of Technology Professor and RFF University Fellow and Board Member Catherine Wolfram to make sense of the significant new global launch of the Open Coalition on Compliance Carbon Markets at last year’s 30th Conference of the Parties. In accordance with a key tenet of the Paris Agreement, the declaration of the Open Coalition establishes formal—and actionable—intent for the participating countries to align on a shared global framework for carbon markets. Elkerbout and Wolfram characterize this initiative as a sign of adapting to new dynamics that have been governing international climate negotiations, with strong possibility of more countries joining. With this momentum, Elkerbout and Wolfram note progress toward emissions reductions and climate cooperation. References and recommendations: “Building a Climate Coalition: Aligning Carbon Pricing, Trade, and Development” by Catherine Wolfram, Joseph Aldy, Candido Bracher, Vaibhav Chaturvedi, Kimberly Clausing, Christian Gollier, Frank Jotzo, Marcelo PL Medeiros, Athiphat Muthitacharoen, Axel Ockenfels, Mari Pangestu, Daouda Sembene, E. Somanathan, Dustin Tingley, Jennifer Winter, Simon Black, and Carolyn Fischer; https://salatainstitute.harvard.edu/building-a-climate-coalition-gcpp-flagship-report/ “Chokepoints: American Power in the Age of Economic Warfare” by Edward Fishman; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/726149/chokepoints-by-edward-fishman/ “The Old World Order Is Dead” by Paul Musgrave; https://musgrave.substack.com/p/the-old-world-order-is-dead Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

For this week’s episode, Dan Egan, the Brico Fund Journalist in Residence at the Center for Water Policy at the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee and Pulitzer Prize finalist, joins host Margaret Walls to discuss his book, “The Devil's Element: Phosphorus and a World Out of Balance.” Through stories about the history of phosphorus—including why it earned the “devil’s element” title—Egan describes the large-scale ecological experiment in a Canadian lake that opened people’s eyes to the connections between phosphorus, agriculture, and algal blooms, also noting the challenges of reconciling business interests with environmental concerns. Despite ongoing water pollution in the Midwest, Egan’s experience as a Great Lakes journalist has shown that clearing toxins from waters is a goal within reach that has wide-reaching benefits. References and recommendations: “The Devil’s Element: Phosphorus and a World Out of Balance” by Dan Egan; https://wwnorton.com/books/the-devils-element “The Dark Frontier: Unlocking the Secrets of the Deep Sea” by Jeffrey Marlow; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/652987/the-dark-frontier-by-jeffrey-marlow/ “A Terrible Country” by Keith Gessen; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/545063/a-terrible-country-by-keith-gessen/ Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

In this episode, host Daniel Raimi is joined by Luisa Palacios, an adjunct senior research scholar at Columbia University’s Center on Global Energy Policy, who breaks down the major and most recent energy developments in Venezuela. Palacios recounts the role of oil in Venezuela’s history and the implications of oil dependency as the country navigates another period of political uncertainty. Venezuela’s oil industry, Palacios underscores, is a major player in the international energy market and faces obstacles to acquiring substantial investment. Palacios draws from her expertise in emerging markets and international affairs to note the critical moves to look for as the world awaits how Venezuela could balance efforts to reduce carbon intensity with economic growth. References and recommendations: “Reinventing Venezuela’s Struggling Electricity Sector” by Francisco Morandi and Luisa Palacios; https://www.americasquarterly.org/article/reinventing-venezuelas-struggling-electricity-sector/ “Michael Webber on What’s Behind Rising Energy Costs” episode of the Columbia Energy Exchange podcast from the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs; https://www.energypolicy.columbia.edu/michael-webber-on-whats-behind-rising-energy-costs/ “World Energy Investment” reports from the International Energy Agency; https://www.iea.org/reports/world-energy-investment-2025#overview Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

For this week’s episode, Miyuki Hino, an associate professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, joins host Margaret Walls to discuss Hino’s latest research on high-tide flooding (also called “sunny day flooding” or “nuisance flooding”) in North Carolina. Hino recounts the complications of measuring increasingly frequent and disruptive floods and some innovative solutions to technical challenges—including creating water-level sensors and engaging communities to understand local geographies. By specializing data collection to suit a research area in murky waters, Hino and her research collaborators have noted more accurately the extent to which sea level rise has affected coastal communities. With improved data on hand, Hino reports that previous estimates of flood frequency are serious, but unsurprising, understatements of current realities and that updated findings can help communities better adapt to changing tides. References and recommendations: “Land-based sensors reveal high frequency of coastal flooding” by Miyuki Hino, Katherine Anarde, Tessa Fridell, Ryan McCune, Thomas Thelen, Elizabeth Farquhar, Perri Woodard, and Anthony Whipple; https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-025-02326-w Sunny Day Flooding Project; https://sunnydayflooding.com/ “Good Hang with Amy Poehler” podcast; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Good_Hang_with_Amy_Poehler Subscribe to stay up to date on news and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

For this week’s episode, host Daniel Raimi sits down with David Konisky, a professor at Indiana University Bloomington, to reflect on the release of Konisky’s new book, “Power Lines: The Human Costs of American Energy in Transition,” which Konisky wrote with Sanya Carley. Unlike previous calls for innovation-forward research on the energy transition, Konisky proposes a people-centered approach that includes examining the uneven benefits and costs that get distributed among communities that host or otherwise are affected by clean energy development. Konisky underscores that a close-up look into communities at the front lines of the energy transition can provide a heightened awareness of the local impacts of energy infrastructure and potentially facilitate sound and equitable decisions in federal energy policymaking. References and recommendations: “Power Lines: The Human Costs of American Energy in Transition” by Sanya Carley and David Konisky; https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/P/bo254000286.html “Frederick Douglass: Prophet of Freedom” by David W. Blight; https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/david-w-blight “James” by Percival Everett; https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/22691 Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

In this episode, host Kristin Hayes is joined by Andy Rankin and Dave McGimpsey—both partners at Dentons, a global law firm—to explore how an overlooked tax policy in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act can spur clean energy development, to the benefit of both local communities and companies. Despite recent rollbacks of solar and wind energy tax credits, Rankin and McGimpsey insist that newly expanded Qualified Opportunity Zones (QOZs) provide ample opportunity for energy developers to gain a solid footing in project financing and equity growth. Unlike the original 2017 iteration of the QOZ program, new adjustments ensure that QOZ tax benefits have no sunset date in sight, hinting at a new dawn for renewable energy build-out. References and recommendations: “The Qualified Opportunity Zone Program and Clean Energy: A New Era for Natural Gas, Solar, Wind, Energy Storage and Nuclear Projects” from Dentons; https://www.dentons.com/en/insights/articles/2025/september/4/the-qualified-opportunity-zone-program George F. Will op-ed writings; https://www.washingtonpost.com/people/george-f-will/ “The Water Values Podcast” with Dave McGimpsey; https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/water-values-podcast/id843026539 Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

This week, host Daniel Raimi talks with Tisha Schuller about the nature of the energy transition. Schuller, the founder and CEO of Adamantine Energy, discusses her new book, The Myth and The Moment: From Polarization to Progress in the New Energy Landscape, which interrogates the myth that the energy transition will be easy and inevitable. She argues that this myth has shaped political identities and has influenced how stakeholders and the general public view the “good guys” and the “bad guys” in the energy transition. Schuller points out that oil and gas companies can apply complex solutions to manage carbon emissions, and indeed that the ongoing activities of these companies and related solutions will be essential in reaching climate goals. Aiming for a balanced perspective, Schuller paints a picture of what an effective energy transition might look like. References and recommendations: “The Myth and The Moment: From Polarization to Progress in the New Energy Landscape” by Tisha Schuller; https://energythinks.com/the-myth-and-the-moment/ Energy for Growth Hub; https://energyforgrowth.org/ “Environmental Law After Environmentalism” by Ted Nordhaus; https://thebreakthrough.org/issues/energy/environmental-law-after-environmentalism Daniel Raimi on the “Energy Thinks” podcast with Tisha Schuller; https://energythinks.com/podcasts/trim-your-sails/ Subscribe to stay up to date on podcast episodes, news, and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/

This week, host Margaret Walls talks with Benji Backer about attracting nonpartisan support for environmental conservation. Backer is the founder and CEO of Nature Is Nonpartisan—a nonprofit organization focused on redefining environmental issues as nonpartisan—and serves on the board of the American Conservation Coalition. In this episode, Backer discusses his approach to environmental issues by describing his conservation work, which includes helping to stop a recent policy proposal that aimed to sell public lands, aiding in the creation of a domestic conservation caucus in the Senate, and assisting in forming the Make America Beautiful Again Commission. He also speaks to the importance of accurately communicating the risks of climate change; people connecting with their land; and promoting conservation at all levels, including local, state, federal, and corporate. References and recommendations: “The Conservative Environmentalist: Common Sense Solutions for a Sustainable Future” by Benji Backer; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/730880/the-conservative-environmentalist-by-benji-backer/ Nature Is Nonpartisan; https://natureisnonpartisan.org/ American Conservation Coalition; https://acc.eco/ “The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt’s Darkest Journey” by Candice Millard; https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/114422/the-river-of-doubt-by-candice-millard/ Subscribe to stay up to date on news and research from Resources for the Future: https://www.rff.org/subscribe/