Energy Switch Season 1

The oil and gas industry provides 10 million US jobs and billions to the economy. Cheap, available oil makes transportation and products affordable. Abundant gas has offset coal in power generation, and can balance intermittent renewables. But the economic benefits can be cyclical, and investors in the US and Europe are fleeing due to CO2 concerns and declining returns. Other environmental challenges include methane leaks, water use, and oil spills. Does the US need a thriving oil and gas industry? Or should we more actively transition to lower carbon emission energies. Could a system built on those realistically replace the benefits of oil and gas? Dr. David Victor, a Professor of Innovation and Public Policy at UC San Diego, and Matt Gallagher, former President and CEO of Parsley Energy, weigh in.

Carbon-based fuels provide more than 80% of global energy. To reduce emissions will take time and money. What are the benefits of a carbon tax? Or would it be more effective to encourage carbon-reducing technologies? Dr. Billy Pizer, the Vice President of Research and Policy Engagement at Resources for the Future, and Sasha Mackler, the Executive Director of the Bipartisan Policy Center discuss.

Energy sustainability can be grouped into three areas: Environmental: can an energy resource operate in equilibrium with the environment? Sociopolitical: do its benefits enrich broad society? Economic: can it operate profitably to support itself. Dr. Bridget Scanlon, Senior Research Scientist at the Bureau of Economic Geology, and Sean O'Donnell, Partner at Quantum Energy, discuss.

If we are to meet decarbonization targets, each nuclear plant could take over a decade to permit and construct, while alternatives could be deployed in a few years. The conversation continues between Dr. Arjun Makhijani and Michael Shellenberger about whether or not expanding nuclear power will play a significant role in decarbonizing the electricity sector, in the US and globally.

Nuclear proponents say we can't meet climate goals without expanding the fleet and pursuing new nuclear technologies, while opponents say cost and time are the main issues. Will nuclear power play a role in decarbonizing the electricity sector? Dr. Arjun Makhijani, the President of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, and Michael Shellenberger, a best-selling author, discuss.

The world is changing - and so is the world of energy. Many experts think coal, oil and natural gas will remain our largest global energy sources. Meanwhile, solar and wind become more affordable, encouraging their growth worldwide. Secretary Ernie Moniz, the 13th United States Secretary of Energy, and Dr. Daniel Yergin, a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, discuss the new geopolitics of energy.

Transitioning the developed world toward lower carbon energies, and the developing world toward having enough energy, are grand and sometimes conflicting challenges. Both will cost trillions of dollars. Where will this money come from? Deborah Byers, Partner and Americas Industry Leader at EY, and Ken Medlock, the Senior Director of the Center for Energy Studies at Rice University, discuss.

Countries are excited about hydrogen as a way to reduce their CO2 emissions, but costs need to come down and continued technological and manufacturing developments will be required for hydrogen to compete. Dr. Julio Friedmann, a Senior Research Scholar at the Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University, and Dr. Steve Hamburg, the Chief Scientist at the Environmental Defense Fund, discuss.

Leia Guccione and Robert Bryce discuss the potential to scale up solar and wind power, concerns over materials, mining, and land use, and whether these sources can one day power the world.

Robert Bryce and Leia Guccione discuss the potential for wind and solar to power the world, how these sources provide only 4% of global electricity today, and the challenges of scaling them up.

Dr. Naomi Boness and Rachel Fakhry discuss the impact of hydraulic fracturing on the energy sector, its role in replacing coal with gas, and how this shift reduces, but doesn't eliminate, carbon emissions.

Dr. Steve Koonin, a former U.S. Secretary of Science, and Dr. Michael Greenstone, Director of the Energy Policy Institute at the University of Chicago, discuss how climate change is reshaping communities worldwide.