Episodes

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 …

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 …

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 …

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. …

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 …

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 …

Last but not least, our concluding episode of 2020 is with James Cameron. No not the director, but he is doing radical things in a suit (this will make more sense once you press play). Find out why Tom Paine …

What is the future of urban transportation in the world’s cities? Will autonomous cars revolutionize our lives? Meet the woman behind the world’s largest car sharing company, Robin Chase, the transport entrepreneur. She is the co-founder of Zipcar, Veniam and …

What happens behind the scenes of the EU Parliament? One of the leading figures in European politics, Claude Turmes, the Minister for Energy and Minister for Spatial Planning in Luxembourg, joins Michael Liebreich for episode 21. As a member of …

As a 10 year old girl, Richenda Van Leeuwen saw a solar panel at the Centre of Alternative Technology on a rainy day in Wales. This would serve as her first point of inspiration for the career ahead of her. …

From CEO of Z Energy to founding the Climate Leaders Coalition, Mike Bennetts has had an immense impact on New Zealand’s position in reducing emissions in the country. Mike and Michael sit down from other sides of the world for …

How can venture capital be used to promote social change and environmental improvement? As a leading venture capitalist of her time and one of the early investors in Tesla, find out the drive behind Nancy Pfund’s incredible career, this week, …

What would Professor Ernest Moniz, 13th United States Secretary of Energy, say to the 16th Secretary who will be appointed in the coming months? Would he, as the architect of the JCPOA (known better as the Iran nuclear deal) agree …

How did Kandeh Kolleh Yumkella impact the Sustainable Development Goals? How has he influenced energy's position in development? Dr Kandeh Kolleh Yumkella – known as KKY in his native Sierra Leone - is a senior academic and politician. He joins …

How can we use data modelling to predict the future of zero-emission energy? This week, Auke Hoekstra discusses the SparkCity model, dealing with, adoption of electric vehicles, charging infrastructure, and the effects the switch to EVs is going to have …

How much energy are data centres using worldwide? Why have lamps been a massive infrastructure revolution? From food waste in olive production in Spain to air pollution, Michael welcomes Jonathan Maxwell into his home for Cleaning Up’s 14th episode! Jonathan …

How to estimate amount of oil produced in Syria by Daesh using satellite photos of night time lights? How, using the same technique, can we measure reliability of access to energy? How to provide reliable and affordable energy for all? …

How did Ramez Naam spot the exponential cost trends in renewables? How should we tailor our messaging to convince different audiences we need to act on climate change? Why are forecasters so often wrong? Ramez Naam, our Ep12 guest talks …

How to get members of bands such as Queen, Pink Floyd, Rush, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple together to help a country devastated by an earthquake? How helpful can celebrities be in the clean energy transition? Do we fully recognize the …

What does Brexit mean for the climate transition? What will COPs 30 to 50 be about (and why is it trade?) What should environmentalists do instead of giving somebody who's got a pile of problems another one to deal with? …

How does one come up with a brand new clean energy business model? Why if energy transition is the 'biggest wealth creation opportunity of our lifetimes' many have been slow to get on board? What went wrong in California with …

What does a futurist do? Does it include dealing with jetpacks? Or is it more about helping organisations to become more resilient? Cool as jetpacks might be, our Episode 8 guest, Roger Dennis covers no less interesting topics: how he …

According to Wikipedia, Bertrand Piccard is a Swiss psychiatrist and balloonist. This is something of an understatement. Bertrand did indeed qualify as a psychiatrist from the University of Lausanne. But he is best-known as an explorer, aviator and communicator. Bertrand …

What does it take to turn a demoralised organisation around? How to convince 195 states to sign up to the Paris agreement? What does Christiana Figueres have to say about RCP8.5 and those still believing there will be no energy …