Episodios

  • A Biotech Solution to Palm Oil Deforestation

    A Biotech Solution to Palm Oil Deforestation
    Jul 3 2024
    Today’s episode is the fifth in our series on decarbonizing the roots of value chains, where we’re looking deep into supply chains that serve many industries. Previously we talked about green concrete, green steel, regenerative agriculture, and lab-grown cotton. Today we’re discussing palm oil – a widely used product that’s also associated with climate change due to some palm oil plantations arising from clearing and burning tropical forests, releasing carbon and destroying habitat and biodiversity. We talk with Shara Ticku, Co-founder and CEO of C16 Biosciences (and HBS alumna), which uses fermentation to produce a palm oil substitute. She describes how she and her partners built their start-up, including how they decided which products to develop, and which customers to pursue. She also shares advice for those interested in working at climate tech startup companies like hers. Climate Rising Host: Professor Mike Toffel, Faculty Chair, Business & Environment Initiative (LinkedIn) Guest: Shara Ticku, Co-founder and CEO, C16 Biosciences, and HBS alumna (LinkedIn)
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    52 m
  • How Lab - Grown Cotton can Decarbonize Textiles

    How Lab - Grown Cotton can Decarbonize Textiles
    Jun 19 2024
    Today’s episode is the fourth in our series on decarbonizing the roots of value chains, where we’re looking deep into supply chains that serve many industries. Previously we talked about the technical products of green concrete and green steel, and agriculture through the lens of regenerative agriculture. Today we continue our focus on decarbonizing agricultural products by focusing on lab-grown cotton. Luciano Bueno, founder and CEO of GALY, joins me today to talk about how his biomaterials start-up uses sugar to feed cells and grow cotton in the lab. Luciano will share how he rebounded from a venture that failed, and then started GALY and grew it into the Series B company it is today. I’ll also ask him to share his views of the future of lab-grown fabrics and his reflections on entrepreneurship in climate tech more broadly. Host and Guest Climate Rising Host: Professor Mike Toffel, Faculty Chair, Business & Environment Initiative (LinkedIn) Guest: Luciano Bueno, Founder and CEO at GALY (LinkedIn)
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    44 m
  • Regenerative Agriculture and “The Profiteers” with Cambridge Professor Chris Marquis

    Regenerative Agriculture and “The Profiteers” with Cambridge Professor Chris Marquis
    Jun 5 2024
    Today’s episode is the third in our series on decarbonizing the roots of value chains, where we’re looking deep into supply chains that serve many industries. Previously we talked about green concrete and steel, and today we’re turning to agriculture. Chris Marquis, a professor at the University of Cambridge Judge Business School sheds light on regenerative agriculture, a set of practices that restore farming ecosystems while having the potential to decarbonize. We’ll also talk about his new book The Profiteers, where he discusses the need to hold companies accountable for the environmental and social externalities associated with their operations and supply chains, and he describes how some companies have engaged in what he calls “corporate gaslighting” to shift the focus of responsibility onto others.
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    40 m
  • H2 Green Steel: Decarbonizing Steel Production with Green Hydrogen

    H2 Green Steel: Decarbonizing Steel Production with Green Hydrogen
    May 22 2024
    This episode is a part of our series on decarbonizing the roots of value chains, where we’re looking deep into supply chains that serve many industries. Our prior episode explored green concrete, and today’s focuses on steel. Steel production primarily relies on coal and coke, and accounts for nearly 7% of global CO2 emissions. But new technologies are on the horizon. Maria Persson Gulda, Chief Technology Officer at H2 Green Steel, joins us to discuss an innovative solution: green steel made from green hydrogen. By harnessing renewable power, H2 Green Steel is pioneering a path to drastically reduce steel's carbon footprint. Maria will also share insights into the world’s largest green steel plant in Sweden H2 is building, the evolving technological landscape, and the pivotal role of initial adopters. Climate Rising Host: Professor Mike Toffel, Faculty Chair, Business & Environment Initiative (LinkedIn) Guest: Maria Persson Gulda, the Chief Technology Officer at H2 Green Steel (LinkedIn)
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    34 m
  • Green Concrete: Decarbonizing Construction with Recycled Glass

    Green Concrete: Decarbonizing Construction with Recycled Glass
    May 8 2024
    The first of a series on decarbonizing the roots of value chains, where we’re looking deep into supply chains that serve many industries, this episode focuses on concrete. Concrete is one of the world’s most popular materials, and it accounts for nearly 8% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions, most of which comes from cement– the glue that binds conventional forms of concrete. We focus on one type of green concrete produced by Urban Mining Industries that replaces half of the cement with recycled glass that makes its product much less carbon intensive. We present this story through an episode of the HBR Cold Call podcast, where host Brian Kenny interviews HBS professors Shirley Lu and Bob Kaplan. They discuss how Harvard is pilot testing the use of green concrete in its current construction projects as part of the university’s efforts to reduce its carbon footprint. They’ll also discuss various methods to measure carbon emissions, including the e-liability approach Bob Kaplan lays out in a recent Harvard Business Review article.
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    29 m
  • Helping Companies Become More Climate Resilient

    Helping Companies Become More Climate Resilient
    Apr 24 2024
    In this episode in our adaptation series, Peter Hall, Managing Director at Resonance Impact Advisory, draws upon his experience in global engineering and professional services firms to share how consulting and advisory companies can help their clients assess their risks and take actions to become more resilient to climate change. He walks through several adaptation frameworks and roadmaps recently developed by governments, civil society, and private companies to help provide clarity and guidance on the steps necessary for more resilient companies and societies. For notes and resources visit; climaterising.org
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    39 m
  • How Insurance Companies are Addressing Climate Risks

    How Insurance Companies are Addressing Climate Risks
    Apr 10 2024
    This episode in our adaptation series focuses climate change’s implications on the insurance industry. Claudine Blamey, Group Director of Sustainability at Aviva, describes how climate change evokes both transition risks and physical risks for insurance companies, and affects how insurance companies are assessing and pricing risk in their underwriting process, and influences their investment strategy. Claudine also describes innovative insurance products such as parametric and catastrophe insurance that are emerging to address natural disasters that are exacerbated by climate change. For resources and other episodes visit climaterising.org
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    38 m
  • Building Climate - Resilient Cities and Infrastructure

    Building Climate - Resilient Cities and Infrastructure
    Mar 27 2024
    This episode in our climate adaptation series features HBS Professor John Macomber. John discusses how companies and governments need to incorporate climate resilience as they develop and finance real estate and infrastructure to address the risks of flooding, wildfire, extreme heat, drought, and sea level rise. John describes “five R” options to address these risks—to reinforce, rebound, retreat, restrict, and rebuild—and highlights best practices from insurance companies and the governments of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and Singapore. He also identifies entrepreneurial opportunities to foster adaptation and resilience. Climate Rising Host: Professor Mike Toffel, Faculty Chair, Business & Environment Initiative Guest: John Macomber, Senior Lecturer at Harvard Business School. For transcripts and other resources, visit climaterising.org
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    46 m