Episodes

Catherine McKenna is a Canadian Liberal politician serving as the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities since 2019. Before that she was the Minister of Environment and Climate Change for 4 years. Her ministerial mandate includes ensuring infrastructure investments support just economic growth and the clean energy transition. Her ministerial mandate includes, inter alia, delivering of “accessible affordable, active and zero-emissions transit options”, “investing in large-scale building retrofits and clean power” and “continuing to close the infrastructure gap in Indigenous communities, particularly with respect to affordable housing”. Before taking the infrastructure and communities portfolio, Catherine was in charge of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change. She was appointed just before COP21 in Paris and played a significant role during the summit. Catherine is a lawyer by education: she co-founded Canadian Lawyers Abroad, now called Level, a charity throu…

James Thornton is the CEO and founder of ClientEarth, a leading environmental law organisation in Europe. Since its establishment in 2007, ClientEarth tackled world’s most pressing environmental issues such as biodiversity loss, climate change, and toxic chemicals using advocacy, litigation and research. ClientEarth now operates globally with offices in London, Brussels, Warsaw, New York and Beijing. Before this, he was a Senior Lawyer for the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) in Los Angeles for 9 years. His role involved setting up the citizens' enforcement project specifically working on the Clean Water Act under the Reagan Administration. In 6 months he successfully won 60 cases in federal courts. Named by the New Statesman as one of the top 10 people who could change the world and one of the top 100 lawyers practising in the UK, James is at the forefront of utilising the legal system and advocacy to create real climate action. In 2016, The Financial Times awarded hi…

Nigel Topping was appointed UK High Level Champion for Climate Action in January 2020. His role involves bringing together different stakeholders in the #racetozero. His vision is to create a bigger role for non-state actors within the climate conversation, which he successfully managed in the Paris Agreements. Between 2015 and 2019 Nigel was the CEO of We Mean Business, a coalition of businesses working to accelerate the transition to a zero carbon economy. He has also held leadership positions at CDP (formerly the Carbon Disclosure Project) for 7 years. Before focusing on climate action, he worked in the private sector for over 20 years in manufacturing and supply chain. His career has taken him all over the world, including emerging economies like Brazil, India, and China. Nigel holds a BA in Mathematics from Cambridge University and an MSc in Holistic Science from Schumacher College.

Thomas Nowak is the Secretary General of the European Heat Pump Association - he’s an expert on heating and electricity. Thomas is a man who walks the talk – he’s a proud owner of a heat pump and a solar power plant.In 2006, Thomas Nowak was appointed as the Secretary General of the European Heat Pump Association (EHPA). His role in Brussels involves promoting heat pump technology as a viable and efficient tool for the future. EHPA achieves this goal by producing reports with key data as well as representing the industry to the European institutions and stakeholders.As an expert in the industry, Thomas has presented his research in articles and conferences in international and European conferences. They have largely been about the integration of heat pumps in the energy market. Moreover, he has contributed to the IEA energy technology perspectives and the REN21 Renewables Global Status Report. Thomas holds a degree in business administration and economics from Paderborn U…

Sharan Burrow has been the General Secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation since 2010. In her role she represents 200 million workers in 163 countries and territories with 331 national affiliates and is the first woman to have this position. Sharan Burrow has been the person behind some of the biggest union negotiations regarding labour rights and economic reforms both in Australia and internationally.Before becoming the General Secretary of the ITUC, Sharan held other leadership positions in the organisation. She also led the Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) from 2000 to 2010. Her role as President saw the introduction of Paid Paternal Leave in Australia, a huge win for women’s rights. As an advocate for the environment, labour rights, and women’s rights, Sharan’s career has taken her to important positions including a Board Member of the UN Global Compact, Panel Member of UN Secretary General’s High-Level Panel on Women’s Economic Empowerment, Vice …

This episode of Cleaning Up is based on a March 2021 blog written by Michael for BloombergNEF https://about.bnef.com/blog/liebreich-climate-and-finance-lessons-from-a-time-machine/We would like to thank BloombergNEF for allowing us to record it.

Naoko Ishii is a professor, executive vice president and Director of the Center for Global Commons at the University of Tokyo since August 2020. The Center for Global Commons has the mission of putting academia at the forefront of achieving sustainable developmentFrom 2012 to 2020, Dr Naoko Ishii was CEO and chair of the Global Environment Facility (GEF). The GEF is a grant providing organisation with a focus on environmental initiatives. She played a key role in producing the organisation’s first long-term and mid-term strategies. During her time in office, she managed to secure more than $4 billion in funding for the GEF. Naoko Ishii was Deputy Vice Minister of Finance from 2010 to 2012, - after a long career in finance – both domestic and international: she spent a large part of her career at the World Bank (Country Director for Sri Lanka and Maldives between 2006 and 2010, program coordinator for Vietnam between 1997 2001) and the International Monetary Fund.Naoko Ishi…

It’s a first here on Cleaning Up, our very own debate special. Today we will be joined by Ben Goldsmith and Gareth Wyn-Jones to discuss farming and agricultural policy. Please welcome them both, and wish them both luck! Bio – Ben Goldsmith Ben Goldsmith is the chief executive officer of Menhaden Capital, an investment trust focusing on efficient use of energy and resources. He is also a Trustee of The Children’s Investment Fund Foundation and Chair of the UK Conservative Environment Network’s Board. Moreover, he is involved in the UK Government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) as a non-executive director. Bio – Gareth Wyn Jones Gareth Wyn Jones is a sheep farmer from Tyn Llwyfan in North Wales. His farm has been with his family for over 370 years. Known as the ‘tweeting farmer’, Gareth uses media (both social and traditional) as an educational tool to show the public the life of a farmer. He has appeared on the BBC numerous times including…

Tony Blair, UK Prime Minister from 1997 to 2007 and Executive Chairman of the Tony Blair Institute, joins Michael Liebreich for the first episode of Season 3. Bio Tony Blair was the UK Prime Minister from 1997 to 2007 and is now the Executive Chairman of the Tony Blair Institute, a not-for-profit organisation established in 2016 with staff of 200 spread over more than 20 countries. The Institute’s mission is to ‘to equip leaders with what they need to build effective Governance and deliver open, inclusive and prosperous societies in a globalised world’. Since establishing the Institute, Tony Blair devotes ‘at least 80% of his time’ to running it. The Institute’s efforts are focused on improving governance in a number of African states and also supporting electrification on the continent via its ‘Power Africa’ programme. Recently, the Institute has done extensive work on COVID-19 response – from the role of digital technology to vaccination plans. Tony Blair’s time in …

Teresa Ribera, Deputy Prime Minister in the Spanish government and the Minister for the Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, is joining us this week on Cleaning Up. She has played a key role in Spain’s low-carbon transition and is a vocal advocate of a green COVID-19 recovery. Bio Since 2018 Teresa Ribera is a Deputy Prime Minister in the Spanish Government and the Minister for the Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge. In her role, she has advocated reorienting the Spanish economy towards green tech, put in place a €220m deal to get coal off the grid as well as negotiating a nuclear phase-out. From 2008 to 2011 she held the position of Secretary of State for Climate Change and Biodiversity in the second administration of Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero. Between her two ministerial stints in government, Teresa was the Director of the Paris-based Institute for Sustainable Development and International Relations. In that capacity, she …

This week, Michael Liebreich is joined by Professor Jim Skea from Imperial College London’s Centre for Environmental Policy and the co-author of the seminal IPCC 2018 Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5C. Bio Jim Skea is a Professor of Sustainable Energy at Imperial College London and the co-author of the IPCC 2018 Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5C. He’s still involved in the works of the IPCC, currently co-chairing the Working Group III (focused on climate change mitigation) contribution to AR6. Between 2012 and 2017 Professor Skea was an Energy Strategy Fellow at the Research Councils UK. Meanwhile, he was also the President of the Energy Institute between 2015 and 2017. He led the UK Energy Research Centre and worked on UK’s energy transition scenarios from 2004-2012. Born in Scotland, Jim Skea read Mathematical Physics at Edinburgh University, followed by a PhD in Physics at Cambridge University’s Cavendish Laboratory. After completing his PhD, Jim Skea…

This week our guest on Cleaning Up is Kate Hampton, the CEO of the Children's Investment Fund Foundation and a long-time expert in sustainable finance and the carbon markets. Bio Kate Hampton has been the CEO of the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) since March 2016. Before that, she was in charge of the CIFF’s Climate Change team, since 2009. Her policy expertise has led her to a variety of advisory roles. Currently, these include the Observer Research Foundation (India) and the China Council for International Cooperation on Environment and Development (CCICED), the China Advisory Group on Global Climate Governance, the Open Political Economy Network (OPEN), the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment (University of Oxford), We Protect Global Alliance, Friend of COP26, and Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan Advisory Council. Kate has had an incredible career spanning from roles in finance to government. She was Head of Policy at Climate Change Capi…

This week, Kristian Ruby, the Secretary-General of Eurelectric since 2017, will be joining us for a conversation. Eurelectric is a pan-European organisation with the aim of representing the common interests of the electricity industry. He was also once part of the Danish government in the Ministries of Climate and Energy as well as Environment. Bio Kristian Ruby has been the Secretary-General of Eurelectric, a pan-European organisation with the aim of representing the common interests of the electricity industry since 2017. Prior to this role, Kristian was Chief Policy Officer at WindEurope between 2015 and 2016. This involved producing political strategies as well as leading the political advocacy work. From 2014 to 2015, he was Chief Advisor/Manager at Operate A/S who work closely with corporations, ministries, and government agencies with PR campaigns concerning climate and the environment. Kristian has political experience as well. Between 2010 and 2014 he was w…

Today is International Women’s Day. We want to take the time to highlight some of the incredible women who are leading the world’s pivot to net-zero. From politics to finance and diplomacy, these women are vital to climate action on an international level. Each episode is available in full at www.cleaningup.live Name of each episode with their link Episode 2: Rachel Kyte 'Investing in Climate Leadership' https://www.cleaningup.live/episode-2-rachel-kyte Episode 4: Barbara Buchner ‘Counting the Climate Cash’ https://www.cleaningup.live/episode-4-barbara-buchner Episode 5: Kirsty Gogan ‘Fighting for Nuclear’ https://www.cleaningup.live/episode-5-kirsty-gogan Episode 6: Christiana Figueres ‘To Paris & Beyond’ https://www.cleaningup.live/episode-6-christiana-figureres Episode 10: Angela Francis ‘A Green Deal without the Yellow Vests’ https://www.cleaningup.live/episode-10-angela-francis Episode 18: Nancy Pfund ‘Women Backing Winners’ https://www.cleaningup.live/episod…

From the core of British politics, Amber Rudd joins Michael Liebreich for a conversation. She is the former MP for Hastings and Rye representing the Conservative party, the Home Secretary for 2 years from 2016, and the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions from 2018 to 2019. Bio Amber Rudd is currently the Chair of the International Advisory Group for Equinor, a major Norwegian energy company. Amber Rudd is also an advisor for several firms in the security and communication space. She is also a trustee of the Climate Group, an international non-profit focusing on climate and energy. Prior to this work, she was at the core of British politics. She was an MP for Hastings and Rye between 2010 and 2019. She held numerous ministerial posts: the Home Secretary between 2016-2018. She led the response to the tragic 2017 London Bridge terrorist attack. From 2015-2016, she was the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, representing the UK during the triumphant Pa…

Joining Cleaning Up today is start-up legend, Greg Jackson. Greg is CEO and founder of Octopus Energy whose mission is to bring ‘power to the people’ by supplying their customers with 100% green electricity at fair prices. Bio Greg Jackson is the CEO and founder of Octopus Energy, the new renewable energy provider that started in the UK and is now expanding globally. Greg has built one of the fastest growing energy firms – Octopus, with just under 2 million clients is on track to join the group of the Big Six utility providers. The key to company’s success is “elec-tech” software allowing customers to use electricity at the lowest rates possible – and once actually paying consumers to use electricity when renewables generation reached record highs. Greg believes electricity is becoming a tech sector – and his company is at the forefront of the ‘digital revolution’ in the energy space. Before founding Octopus Energy, Greg has been active in the start-up world both as …

Emma Howard Boyd is one of the leading voices in the UK’s Environment scene. As the Chair of the Environment Agency, she is at the forefront of the current environment agenda. This week, Michael and Emma will discuss everything from recent flooding in the UK to the unique UWC schooling experience. BioEmma Howard Boyd has been the chair of the UK’s Environment Agency since 2016. The Agency is a public body responsible for the protection and enhancement of the environment in England.She’s also the UK Commissioner to the Global Commission on Adaptation, an Ex officio board member of the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA), and an Advisor to the Board of Trade. Emma, with a background in finance, is a board member or advisor to many companies which include The Prince’s Accounting for Sustainability Project, the European Climate Foundation, and Menhaden PLC.Before becoming the Chair of the Agency in September 2016, she served as its Board member since …

Having first met in Business School in Harvard, Claire Perry O'Neill and Michael Liebreich go back a long way. However, he has never been surprised at how much she's achieved since then. From finance to politics and now to the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, she has been behind some of the key implementations in the UK’s fight to Net-Zero. Bio Claire Perry O'Neill is a Managing Director responsible for Climate & Energy at the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Claire is also a board member of Ikigai, a sustainable investment consultancy. Claire was the Minister of State for Energy and Clean Growth in Theresa May’s government between 2017 and 2019. She was responsible for the UK’s first clean growth plan, launching the Powering Past Coal Alliance, preparing the legislation for the UK to become the first major economy to target net-zero emissions by 2050, and for leading the bid to make Glasgow the location for COP26. Her political care…

This week, we welcome Steven Chu, Professor of Physics and Physiology at Stanford University, and the 1997 co-recipient of the 1997 Nobel Prize in Physics to Cleaning Up. Professor Chu was was the first of two Secretaries of Energy during President’s Obama term as president, the second being Ernie Moniz, my guest on Episode 17 of Cleaning Up. He is now the Chair of the Board of the American Association of the Advancement of Science (AAAS). This week, we have also made it into the Top 10 Climate Change Podcasts: https://blog.feedspot.com/climate_change_podcasts/Bio Professor Steven Chu is currently William R. Kenan, Jr., Professor of Physics and Professor of Molecular and Cellular Physiology at Stanford University. He is also the Chair of the Board of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a non-profit organisation defending scientific freedom and encouraging a collaborative approach in order to serve humanity as a whole. Professor Steven Chu served …

Named one of the most influential people in the energy sector by the Forbes magazine and the energy personality of the year by the Financial Times in 2017, Fatih Birol is one of the most important voices in the energy world. He is the Executive Director of the International Energy Agency, leading it for the second four-year-term now. Dr Fatih Birol has been instrumental in its modernisation process. He is also one of the few heads of an international organisation who have worked their way up through the ranks.BioDr Fatih Birol is the Executive Director of the International Energy Agency. He was first appointed in 2015 and re-elected in 2018 for the second term. During his time in office, he modernised the Agency, focusing his efforts on involving major emerging economies in the Agency’s works, broadening IEA’s security mandate and making the IEA the hub for clean energy technologies and energy efficiency. Before becoming the Executive Director, Fatih Birol worked his way t…

Beverley Gower-Jones is the leading figure in the cleantech start-up world. She is the Managing Partner at the Clean Growth Fund which invests in the UK's most promising early-stage, clean growth ventures. She’s also the CEO and founder of Carbon Limiting Technologies, helping companies to commercialize new, innovative technologies. Bio Beverley Gower-Jones is the Managing Partner at the Clean Growth Fund, which is backed by, amongst others, the UK Department of Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. The Fund, with a mandate of £40million (and aim to get to £100 million in 2021), invests in the UK's most promising early-stage, clean growth ventures.  Beverley has also co-founded Carbon Limiting Technologies in 2006 and run it ever since. The company’s aim is to support companies in new technologies and clean energy. Before that she worked for 20 years at Shell in various roles – from Production Geologist in Scotland, Brunei, and Egypt through well engineering all th…

More than any other single person, Zac Goldsmith - or The Right Honourable Lord Goldsmith of Richmond Park as he is properly known – is responsible for the UK Conservative Party’s relatively recent conversion to the cause of the environment. Bio Zac Goldsmith has devoted his entire professional life to the environment – first as editor of the Ecologist magazine, then as an MP and London Mayoral candidate, and now as a Conservative life peer in the House of Lords, where he serves as Minister for Pacific and the Environment at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. As Minister of State, Zac Goldsmith is responsible for forestry and biodiversity, biodiversity and climate and illegal wildlife trade as well as the Pacific region. As Minister of DEFRA (Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs), Goldsmith is currently working on getting COP15 on Biodiversity and COP26 closer. He recently formed…

How do we get climate at the forefront of politics? How can we good data influence the climate transition? In the first episode of the second season of Cleaning Up, Michael Liebreich speaks to Bryony Worthington: a crossbench member of the House of Lords, founder of Ember, and the lead author of the 2008 UK Climate Change Act.Bio:Baroness Bryony Worthington is a Crossbench member of the House of Lords, who has spent her career working on conservation, energy and climate change issues.Bryony Worthington was appointed as a Life Peer in 2011. Her current roles include co-chairing the cross-party caucus Peers for the Planet in the House of Lords and Co-Director of the Quadrature Climate Foundation.Her opus magnum is the 2008 Climate Change Act which she wrote as the lead author. She piloted the efforts on this landmark legislation – from the Friends of the Earth’s ‘Big Ask’ campaign all the way through to the parliamentary works. This crucial legislation requires the UK to reduce …

2020 has been a strange and difficult year. In the midst of the global pandemic, Michael decided to reach out to some familiar faces in global climate leadership not only to catch up but also to discuss how the world can move towards a more sustainable and equitable future. In this Holiday Special, we look back at some of the most insightful, revealing, and humorous moments from Series 1 of Cleaning Up. Michael talks to guests including Professor Ernest Moniz, former US Secretary of Energy; Robin Chase, founder of Zip Car and expert on sustainable transportation; and Kandeh Yumkella, former Director-General of UNIDO. From the future of the energy system and inclusion to behind-the-scenes moments and personal philosophies. Enjoy our favourite moments, have a restful winter holiday, and a prosperous new year!