Solar Washington Board Member Richard Hartung, along with several Solar Washington members, attended the first-ever Bloomberg Green Festival, held in Seattle in early July, and reports for the Solar Washingtonian on this incredible opportunity for hundreds of people interested in solving the climate crisis to hear from a multitude of insightful speakers.

The vast majority of speakers and participants had similar mindsets and models about the need for action, so participants at the event were able to learn from their insights on how to build effective approaches and solutions for resolving climate change from that focused perspective.

Voices for Solving Climate Change

The Festival featured a multitude of speakers from a variety of backgrounds who approach mitigating climate change from a variety of starting points. Activist Stacey Abrams, Rewiring America CEO Ari Matusiak, Washington Governor Jay Inslee, Former Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, basketball great Sue Bird, author Oliver Jeffers, climate activist Sage Lenier and Re-Earth Initiative co-founder Xiye Bastida were among the many superb presenters. Useful insights included:

• Matusiak: 42 percent of emissions depend on personal actions, especially what people eat or drive, so make climate a kitchen table issue that they can solve personally.
• Jewell: Businesses want certainty in order to plan for the future, so consistent policy is critical for enabling companies to take action regarding climate change.
• Bird: While large audiences are beneficial, your platform can still be effective even if it is for just one person. Use your strengths to influence whoever you’re with.
• Jeffers: We have a story problem, not just a climate problem, so much of solving climate change depends on the story we tell. We need to agree on a shared story.
• Lenier: People aren’t taught about solutions for climate change, so there is a lack of skills and knowledge. She started Sustainable and Just Future while still a student to provide climate education.
• Inslee: People don’t like pollution, so focusing on pollution rather than climate when identifying solutions can garner support.

Demystifying Climate

Building on their regular podcast on the MIT Climate Portal, MIT Climate Engagement Program Director Laur Hesse Fisher and Climate Communications Coordinator Aron Krol explained how they sort through questions from listeners and then gave four examples of questions they answer. Why are wildfires getting worse, they asked. Even though hotter air holds more water vapor and seems like it would reduce fires, the combination of that extra water being extracted off the land and the extra heat leads to worse droughts, which increases wildfires. Looking at how many wind turbines equal one nuclear power plant, they explained their methodology for determining that about 800 onshore wind turbines generate as much power as a nuclear power plant – and they emphasized that storage for that wind power is critical to have 24/7 power. Expanding on the concept, they also that said about 8.5 million solar panels equal one nuclear power plant. They expect “what’s next” to be energy storage, policy changes for energy transmission as well as clean energy, and expansion of nuclear power. Key sources of information, they added, include subject matter experts and trusted messengers such as MIT faculty as well as information from the IEA, IPCC and US EIA websites. And rather than trying to convince people to lead more sustainable lives by talking about “green“ or “save the planet”, appeal to morals and economic benefits by making recycling easy, talking about clean energy making good business sense, making conservation the easy thing to do and discussing how they can have influence easily at a building or their home.

Solving Your Climate Vice

Many of us despair at our climate vices, whether it’s frequent airplane travel or eating lots of meat or something else. Practical suggestions came at a session with five diverse panelists: Kate Kurtz, Organics & Landscape Resource Conservation Program Lead, Seattle Public Utilities; Mary Purdy, Eco-Dietitian; Managing Director, Nutrient Density Alliance; Jeremy Sampson, CEO, The Travel Foundation; Dounia Wone, Chief Impact Officer, Vestiaire Collective; and moderator Zahra Hirji, Reporter, Bloomberg Green. Key insights included:

• Look at the root causes of food waste, which can cost a family $1,800 per year even though much of the food is still good, and develop solutions to waste less.
• Promote using second-hand goods in one area, such as clothing, and people will often see second-hand as being advantageous enough that they’ll shift to using second-hand items in other categories.
• Their favorite sources of information can include Project Drawdown, the John Hopkins Center for a Livable Future, EPA WARM (waste reduction) Model and Foodprint.
• To advocate effectively, start by meeting policymakers where they are and end by telling them where they should go.

Investing in Climate Tech

Although he usually does not attend conference, TPG Rise Climate Managing Partner Jim Coulter said he chose to attend the Festival because he believes in the importance of investing in climate and he wanted to make sure the business perspective was heard. TPG Rise has invested in about 1,400 companies, he said, so he has seen many solutions for addressing climate change. An important framework, Coulter said, is to focus on the opportunity rather than the problem. There are lots of solutions and he expects that the fund will continue growing, given the vast number of opportunities.

With these insights and plenty more, including films and food as well as tours and superb networking, participants walked away with inspiration and ideas to propel them forward.