Episodes

In this Climate Chat episode, host Dan Miller interviews Phil Duffy, Chief Scientist for Spark Climate Solutions and former Climate Science Advisor for President Biden. We will discuss Phil's White House experience as well as his current role at Spark Climate Solutions addressing unsolved climate challenges. Dr. Phil Duffy is a scientist who is dedicated to understanding and managing the human consequences of climate change, Phil most recently served in the White House Office of Science and Tech...

In this Climate Chat episode, hosts Leon Simons and Dan Miller interview climate scientist Detlef van Vuuren about his recent paper where he lays our new "emissions scenarios" that will be used by the IPCC to predict future global warming. Since future temperatures depend on our future greenhouse gas emissions, scientists need to use emission scenarios to predict future temperatures. Past scenarios included what some scientists felt were beyond the possible worst case emissions, as well as scena...

In this Climate Chat episode, host Dan Miller interview Devonian Systems co-founder and CEO Alan Ransil about their approach to producing biochar. Biochar is produced when biomass is burned without the presence of oxygen, a process know as pyrolysis. Wood treated this way is also known as charcoal. Biochar is a very stable form of carbon and, therefore, it is a way to sequester CO2 from the atmosphere. While biochar has been produced for thousands of years, it is yet to scale up to a major clima...

In this Climate Chat episode, host Dan Miller talks about what he learned at San Francisco Climate Week and what worried him about optimism bias and the lack of appreciation of accelerated warming and tipping points. He will also discuss some optimistic signs of awareness and solutions. Please Like and Subscribe! Listen to Climate Chat on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/climate-chat/id1893162516 Listen to Climate Chat on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1m0OSLWRPPcyOd...

In this Climate Chat episode, we interview returning guest René van Westen on his latest Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) research, including his research that shows the recent sudden shift of the Gulf Stream is an indication of pending AMOC collapse. Dr. Westen is a postdoctoral researcher at Utrecht University in the Netherlands. René is the author of a number of recent scientific papers on AMOC including the following: Abrupt Gulf Stream path changes are a precursor to a col...

In this Climate Chat episode, Cornell climate scientist -- and returning guest -- Douglas MacMartin discusses the latest research in Sunlight Reflection Methods (a.k.a, solar radiation management (SRM) and Solar Geoengineering) and the practicality of implementing SRM in the coming decade, if needed. Douglas MacMartin is an Associate Professor in the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Cornell University. His research focuses on Sunlight Reflection Methods (SRM, also known ...

In this Climate Chat episode, Host Dan Miller discusses the Iran war's positive and negative climate impacts, and explains why lower fossil fuel emissions caused by high oil prices due to the Iran war will not lower atmospheric CO2 levels nor reduce global warming. Please Like and Subscribe! Dan Miller has been giving talks around the world on the need for urgent climate action for over 20 years. He is co-founder of The Roda Group, a climate-tech venture capital group, and he serves as an adviso...

In this Climate Chat episode, Hosts Dan Miller and Leon Simons discuss recent research that measured the past 3 million years of greenhouse gases, and ocean heat content, and discuss what it means to our climate future. Link to research papers: "Broadly stable atmospheric CO2 and CH4 levels over the past 3 million years": https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-10032-y "Global ocean heat content over the past 3 million years": https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-026-10116-3 Please Like and...

In this Climate Chat episode, we interview Climate Foundation's Founder and Executive Director Brian von Herzen about the Climate Foundation's research of "seaforestation," which is a process that accelerates the growth of ocean kelp that results in (1) reducing greenhouse gas emissions, (2) sequesters atmospheric CO2, (3) increases reflective cloud coverage which results in lower global temperatures. Brian Von Herzen, Ph.D., is the founder and executive director of the Climate Foundation, which...

In this Climate Chat episode, we interview the NYU professor and author Alison Taylor on business ethics and its impact on climate change (and vice versa). Alison Taylor joined New York University Stern School of business as a clinical associate professor in January 2023. Her research focuses on the organizational dimension of corporate responsibility and business ethics. She has expertise in strategy, sustainability, political and social risk, culture and behavior, human rights, ethics and comp...

In this Climate Chat episode, we interview the CEO of Work on Climate, Eugene Kirpichov, about the Work on Climate resource and its new focus on regenerative economics. Eugene Kirpichov is Co-founder and Executive Director of Work on Climate, a global community helping professionals take action on climate across industries and disciplines. Created to help people transition into climate-related careers, the organization is now evolving toward a deeper goal: empowering individuals to become climat...

In this Climate Chat episode, host Dan Miller discusses the reasons that humanity is failing to seriously address the existential climate crisis. While climate science clearly indicates that we must act urgently and dramatically, and cost-effective climate and energy solutions are available, we continue to "choose to fail." Related Climate Chat programs: Barriers to Climate Action: https://youtube.com/live/olcYG0LwJlw Optimism Bias & Climate Change: https://youtu.be/XYb1T2-RmlQ Please Like and S...

In this Climate Chat episode, host Dan Miller interviews the CEO of Reflective, Dakota Gruener, about her organization's support of Sunlight Reflection Methods (SRM, a.k.a., solar-geoengineering) research. Dakota Gruener leads Reflective, a non-profit climate initiative accelerating the pace of sunlight reflection research. Across a career spanning global health, digital privacy, and climate, Dakota has focused on developing frontier technologies with the potential for worldwide impact—while ens...

In this Climate Chat episode, hosts Dan Miller and Leon Simons discuss the latest information on global temperature trends and predictions of reaching +2ºC in the 2030s. We will also discuss James Hansen's latest communications. James Hansen's latest communication: "Another El Nino Already? What Can We Learn from It?" https://mailchi.mp/caa/another-el-nino-already-what-can-we-learn-from-it?e=a29768a646 Climate Chat programs are available here: https://www.youtube.com/@climatechat/streams Please ...

In this Climate Chat episode, we interview climate scientist Francisco Estrada about his recent paper assessing the risks of "Termination Shock" following the implementation of Solar Radiation Management (SRM, a.k.a., solar-geoengineering). Termination Shock is a rapid, severe warming spike that would occur if SRM were suddenly stopped, because accumulated greenhouse gases would heat the planet all at once instead of being masked. Francisco Estrada is a researcher at the Department of Environmen...

In this Climate Chat episode, host Dan Miller discusses SRM and its possible impact on various tipping points. Much of the information comes from the the following research paper: "The interaction of solar radiation modification with Earth system tipping elements" by Gideon Futerman, Mira Adhikari, Alistair Duffey, Yuanchao Fan, Jessica Gurevitch, Peter Irvine and Claudia Wieners: https://esd.copernicus.org/articles/16/939/2025/esd-16-939-2025.pdf Climate Chat SRM/Solar-Geoengineering Playlist: ...

In this Climate Chat episode, host Dan Miller discusses how economic assessments of the risks of climate change differ greatly from scientific assessments. Related reports: Loading the DICE Against Pensions: https://carbontracker.org/reports/loading-the-dice-against-pensions/ Parasol Lost: Recovery plan needed - Global risk management for human prosperity: https://greenfuturessolutions.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Parasol-Lost-Final.pdf Climate Chat programs are available here: https://www.you...

In this Climate Chat episode, host Dan Miller discusses optimism bias as it relates to climate change. Related reports and studies: Emphasizing urgency of climate change is insufficient to increase policy support: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2590332221001160 Cognitive Biases in Climate Risk Management https://www.braced.org/contentAsset/raw-data/533c48ab-749c-49e9-971b-3d0a83293256/attachmentFile The Psychology of Climate Change https://climatecommunications.earth/whitepap...

In this Climate Chat episode, host Leon Simons discusses the impacts of global warming over generations of his Dutch family. Climate Chat programs are available here: https://www.youtube.com/@climatechat/streams Please Like and Subscribe! Leon Simons is a climate scientist based in the Netherlands. He was a co-author with James Hansen on the 2023 "Global Warming in the Pipeline" paper that discussed the recent acceleration in global warming. Leon's work has focused recently on changes in aerosol...

In this Climate Chat episode, hosts Leon Simons and Dan Miller discuss the state of climate change in 2026. Climate Chat programs are available here: https://www.youtube.com/@climatechat/streams Please Like and Subscribe! Dan Miller has been giving talks around the world on the need for urgent climate action for over 20 years. He is co-founder of The Roda Group, a climate-tech venture capital group, and he serves as an advisor for other climate funds and climate-focused non-profit groups. He sta...

In this Climate Chat episode, Host Dan Miller reviews the major climate stories of the year and gives a quick recap of the 2025 Climate Chat programs. Climate Chat programs are available here: https://www.youtube.com/@climatechat/streams Please Like and Subscribe! Dan Miller has been giving talks around the world on the need for urgent climate action for over 20 years. He is co-founder of The Roda Group, a climate-tech venture capital group, and he serves as an advisor for other climate funds an...

In this Climate Chat Shorts episode, host Dan Miller presents why Solar Geo-engineering (a.k.a., Solar Radiation Management or SRM) is now required to avoid more than 2ºC of warming and catastrophe. To listen to the presentation along with follow-on Q&A (about 1 hour total), see this video: https://youtube.com/live/icb_op9_41I For more in-depth programs on SRM/Solar-Geoengineering, see the Climate Chat SRM/Solar-Geoengineering playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLep9tQgCqjCoWPp-16Ox...

In this Climate Chat episode, we answer listener questions posted on the YouTube Live chat, X/Twitter, and BlueSky. You can also forward questions ahead of the program to ClimateChatClub (at) gmail (dot) com. Please Like and Subscribe! Dan Miller has been giving talks around the world on the need for urgent climate action for over 20 years. He is co-founder of The Roda Group, a climate-tech venture capital group, and he serves as an advisor for other climate funds and climate-focused non-profit ...

In this Climate Chat episode, we interview the Chair of the California Energy Commission (CEC), David Hochschild, about the CEC's goal of moving California to 100% clean energy. David Hochschild was appointed chair of the California Energy Commission by Governor Gavin Newsom in February 2019. He fills the environmental position on the five-member Commission where four of the five members are required by law to have professional training in specific areas - engineering or physical science, enviro...