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For this episode Chris was joined by Rebecca Karp (CEO and Founder) and Ali-Sutherland Brown (Principal) from Karp Strategies.

Chris recalls, "I first met Rebecca through the offshore wind space a few years ago when we were both presenting at the International Partnering Forum (IPF) event in Atlantic City, NJ. I was immediately struck by her expertise, her ability to connect with local communities, and understand multiple drivers affecting that community."

On this episode we discuss at length a few major issues affecting modern city planning and sustainability efforts; workforce development, climate change impacts, community partnership, stumbling blocks and challenges to renewables development, and more. Somehow we cover a ton in the hour and it felt like chatting with friends over coffee. Ali and Rebecca are great, and the first time all season that I invited two experts from the same company. We did that to show that even within one firm, differing perspectives can flourish and benefit projects.

Cities will play an increasingly critical role in our society in coming years, but they will also be faced with incredible logistic challenges and constraints. Smart planning now based on projected impacts helps to equitably alleviate those future constraints.

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For this episode Chris was joined by Sarah Henderson (Scientific Director, British Columbia Centers for Disease Control) and Christine Wiedinmyer (Associate Director of Science at Cires at the University of Colorado Boulder). Chris went heavy on the graphics and visuals during his intro this time because wildfire is such a visceral issue. Annual acreage burned is rising each year, insurance costs are a huge problem that not enough people are addressing, and air quality impacts from wildfire smoke are substantial.

It seems like many of the east coast of the US woke up to this issue when their skies were darkened multiple times in 2023 by Canadian wildfire smoke. Perhaps this is due to the level of change that would be needed to cause such an effect? I say this every time, but this episode made me feel smarter on these issues, made me have more questions, and made me wonder what coming years would look like? Turns out that Sarah and Christine have pretty nifty modeling programs that can help answer many of those questions. They are two brilliant leaders, enjoy.

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For this episode, Chris was joined by two colleagues to continue a discussion that the three of them started over breakfast in Minneapolis earlier this year. Michael Jung, Government Affairs & Public Policy at Modern Hydrogen, and Madeline Urbish, Orsted Head of Public Affairs for the Americas Region, both live these issues every day. Our climate is changing, impacts are stacking up, the cost of business is rising (as is associated uncertainties), and most importantly, health impacts are expected to also rise...unless we do something about it.

But these are really heavy issues and progress can be difficult to see at times. I'd like to list Hannah Ritchie's "Six Things to Keep in Mind" from her excellent book, Not the End of the World. Thanks Maddie for the great recommendation.

1. We face big and important environmental challenges
2. The fact that our environmental issues aren't humanity's largest existential risk doesn't mean we shouldn't work on them.
3. You will have to hold multiple thoughts at the same time.
4. None of this is inevitable, but it is possible.
5. We cannot afford to be complacent.
6. You are not alone in this.

It was a fantastic discussion among friends, hearing from two people who know this stuff darn well, and who are actively trying every day to do difficult legacy projects, and make a positive impact. That's laudable and I hope you enjoy what they had to say.

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The Supreme Court in the US (SCOTUS) ended their last term with an absolute flurry of important environmental cases that focused on the role of administrative law in managing these issues. I nearly became an environmental layer eons ago before I went into consulting. I work with them often and was fortunate this episode to sit down with two of the best, J. Michael Showalter (Partner, ArentFox Schiff) and Tanya Nesbitt (Partner, Thompson Hine).

These are complex environmental cases that will affect policy for years to come, and they offer insight towards how the Court may rule in their next term. This is a rare opportunity to get a 46 minute Cliff Notes version of a lot of critical environmental law. Listen in, you'll feel smarter afterward, and likely have a lot more questions. I know I did. Enjoy!

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ESG is a hot button issue for some, but executives see it as a risk mitigation and environmental stewardship question. Cut back all of the noise and fundamental questions remain on how climate change impacts will affect business and its relationship with local communities.

Few are more well-versed in these issues than Matthew Sekol (Microsoft) and Christine Uri (ESG for In-House Counsel). Chris was thrilled to be joined by both experts in this episode. It was a jam-packed hour where we discussed;
- How companies look at ESG and how that has changed over the last 5-10 years,
- Effects of greenwashing,
- Carbon offsets,
- The affects of AI on ESG,
and much more.

Also Matt and Christine had extensive resource ideas to share with our viewers.

Christine: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christineuri/recent-activity/all/

Matt:

ESG Insider from S&P Global's Sustainable1: Covers the latest news and interviews ESG and sustainability leaders

PwC Accounting Podcast: covers regulations, deconstructs ESG sectors, very useful

ESG Now from MSCI: Short, covers news and trends against their research

Tools and Weapons with Brad Smith: This is an ESG podcast with a technology slant, but Smith doesn't know it

Environmental Professionals Radio (EPR): Get inspired by hearing from sustainability and climate change practitioners!

ESG Mindset is available wherever books are sold. Listeners can get 20% off “ESG Mindset” if they use code ESGM20 at koganpage.com.

My newsletter is available at https://esgadvocate.substack.com

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For this episode Chris was joined by Department of Energy expert Kelly Crawford and Dr. Tony Reames (University of Michigan and formerly of DOE). Kelly and Tony are pretty much as good as it gets on energy justice topics, and their decades of experience and passion for the issues shine through in this episode.

We discuss new DOE programs, climate adaptation and mitigation, and energy disparities between EJ areas and non-EJ areas. I love speaking to each of them for their intellect on these topics but also just the sense of hope for being able to provide cleaner more efficient environments for those in need.

This was an incredibly fun and inspiring episode to tape, and as always, we learned quite a bit. We hope you will as well.

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For this episode Chris was joined by Eugene McGrane (Executive Managing Director, Cushman & Wakefield) and John Thomas (President, The Mount Group and the CDRA) to discuss building decarbonization and sustainability in the construction industry. We started there but the discussion took a turn and then focused on how to effectively complete major projects in complex regulatory settings. Between the two of them Eugene and John have about a zillion years of experience, and that comes through clearly as they each discuss what they have been seeing from their parts of the industry.

As always, I learned a lot from doing this episode, and I think you will too.

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For this episode Chris was joined by Jeremy Orr (Director of Litigation and Advocacy Partnerships, Earthjustice) and Sean Moriarty (Director of Strategic Regulatory Affairs, Archer Public Affairs). Both men are leaders in their states on EJ and environmental topics, and helped advance critical legislation that is now shaping the discussion.

Our discussion touched on a lot of issues, including;

• EJ policy development
• Being a first mover on complex topics
• Water policy
• Lived experience
• The efforts of EJ advocates who have been at this for decades
• Objective ways to reduce public health impacts in EJ areas

I respect the hell out of Jeremy and Sean and thank them both for a great discussion and their continued leadership. Hope you enjoy, and be sure as always to listen to the end for their tips on further educational resources. The video of this episode is available on our YouTube channel.