Skip to content
Climate Sense podcast artwork

PODCAST · science

Climate Sense

by The Brookings Institution

From hurricanes and floods, to wildfires and extreme temperatures, climate change is happening all around us. In this podcast series, energy and climate expert Samantha Gross, director of the Energy Security and Climate Initiative at the Brookings Institution, sheds light on the essentials of climate change and how to deal with it. She talks to other experts in various climate-related areas to help you understand the issue. How serious is climate change and what causes it? How does our energy system work and why do we use fossil fuels anyway? What are potential solutions and are they ready for prime time? Why is it taking so long for the world to act?

Publisher-supplied feed metadata · PodParley refreshed Mar 3, 2026 · Source feed

Episodes

  1. Reduce methane leaks and flaring for cleaner oil and gas production

    Burning fossil fuels for energy is the primary source of global greenhouse gas emissions. However, fossil fuels are so central to the global economy that phasing them out will take time. Host Samantha Gross speaks with Deepak Anand from GHGSat and Halfdan Millang from IFC Finance about how to...

  2. How does activism affect the climate debate?

    Activists and civil society groups are very focused on climate change. They use a number of different tactics, from peaceful marches to more disruptive acts of civil disobedience to further their cause. Host Samantha Gross speaks with Dana R Fisher, director of the Center for Environment,...

  3. Critical minerals for the energy transition

    The transition of our energy system away from fossil fuels will drastically increase the world's need for certain minerals. This episode describes what some of these critical minerals are, the current state of supply, and how to ensure adequate supply in the future. Host Samantha Gross speaks…

    more
  4. China and climate change—cooperation or rivalry?

    China is the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases, so clearly it must be involved in any effort to minimize climate change. But relations between the United States and China have gotten much more challenging in the last few years. Host Samantha Gross speaks with Heidi Crebo-Rediker from…

    more
  5. Climate finance is the means to achieve climate action

    Finance is needed to turn climate ambition into action, to transform the energy system to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions and to make our infrastructure more resilient to climate-related events. The need for finance is especially acute in the developing world. Host Samantha Gross talks with…

    more
  6. How do we decarbonize the stuff in our lives?

    The climate implications of our "stuff" economy—appliances, cars, clothes, roads, buildings and more—are enormous. The industrial sector that makes all this stuff accounts for 30 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. In this episode, host Samantha Gross talks with Rebecca Dell, senior…

    more
  7. A nuclear energy renaissance?

    The world needs emissions-free electricity that is available when and where we want it, rather than on Mother Nature's schedule as wind and solar generation are. Nuclear power has the potential to be that source. In this episode, host Samantha Gross talks with former U.S. Secretary of Energy…

    more
  8. Hydrogen's unique role in a zero-carbon energy system

    The first episode of season two of Climate Sense, hosted by Samantha Gross, is all about hydrogen. Hydrogen will have an important role in a zero carbon energy system, enabling decarbonization of energy end-uses that cannot easily use electricity. Hydrogen is made today by splitting molecules of...

  9. Climate Sense season two explores the transition to a zero carbon energy system

    In season two of Climate Sense, host Samantha Gross focuses on how to transition to a clean, zero-carbon energy system—the technical, political and social challenges in getting from here to there. She'll talk to leading experts and government officials on a range of approaches to this zero-carbon...

  10. Your questions for Climate Sense

    This episode of Climate Sense is a Q&A with host Samantha Gross, including questions sourced from our listeners on a wide range of topics from climate as a national emergency, to electrification, bipartisan action, and adaptation versus mitigation. Concerns about the speed and consequences of...

  11. US climate policy progress

    This episode of "Climate Sense" is about U.S. policy—the challenges of implementing climate legislation in the U.S. and recently enacted laws. Climate change and other environmental issues are caught up in our country's increasingly polarized politics. Nonetheless, new climate legislation will...

  12. Justice and fairness in global climate action

    In this episode of "Climate Sense," Samantha Gross explores the issue of justice and fairness in global climate action. Many of the world's poorest countries have contributed the least to existing greenhouse gases but are on the front lines of the changing climate. It is not enough to have…

    more
  13. Planes, trains, and automobiles (but mostly automobiles

    Americans love cars, and trucks, and SUVs. Our country is designed around the automobile. This episode of Climate Sense, hosted by Samantha Gross, is about transportation–an important part of our culture, our energy use, and our greenhouse gas emissions. She talks with two experts on the use of...

  14. The future is electric

    This episode of "Climate Sense" is about electricity—the stuff that comes out of the outlet in your wall. Electricity is the future, but many of us don't think about it beyond the wall plug. In this episode, Samantha Gross explains that electricity is central to transforming our energy system.…

    more
  15. The arduous path to a global climate agreement

    Addressing climate change must be a global undertaking, even though the world's wealthy nations have been responsible for most of the global warming to date. In this episode of "Climate Sense," Samantha Gross speaks with experts on why climate is such a challenging political problem, what it took...

  16. Why do we use fossil fuels and why are they so hard to quit?

    Fossil fuels built the modern world and brought us conveniences that we now take for granted, but science has made it clear that we need to move away from fossil fuels to prevent the worst effects of climate change. However, the energy system is the backbone of the global economy, and changing it...

  17. Introducing the climate change challenge

    Climate change is all over the news these days. We hear about hurricanes and heatwaves, droughts and floods, and young people protesting to fix the problem now. Climate change was a centerpiece of President Biden's campaign in 2020, but it is still a divisive issue in U.S. politics. In this...

  18. Introducing Climate Sense, a podcast about climate change and what we can do about it

    From hurricanes and floods, to wildfires and extreme temperatures, climate change is happening all around us. In this podcast series, energy and climate expert Samantha Gross, director of the Energy Security and Climate Initiative at the Brookings Institution, sheds light on the essentials of...

Type above to search every episode's transcript for a word or phrase. Matches are scoped to this podcast.

Searching…

We're indexing this podcast's transcripts for the first time — this can take a minute or two. We'll show results as soon as they're ready.

No matches for "" in this podcast's transcripts.

Showing of matches

No topics indexed yet for this podcast.

Loading reviews...

ABOUT THIS SHOW

From hurricanes and floods, to wildfires and extreme temperatures, climate change is happening all around us. In this podcast series, energy and climate expert Samantha Gross, director of the Energy Security and Climate Initiative at the Brookings Institution, sheds light on the essentials of climate change and how to deal with it. She talks to other experts in various climate-related areas to help you understand the issue. How serious is climate change and what causes it? How does our energy system work and why do we use fossil fuels anyway? What are potential solutions and are they ready for prime time? Why is it taking so long for the world to act?

HOSTED BY

The Brookings Institution

CATEGORIES

Frequently Asked Questions

How many episodes does Climate Sense have?

Climate Sense currently has 18 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.

What is Climate Sense about?

From hurricanes and floods, to wildfires and extreme temperatures, climate change is happening all around us. In this podcast series, energy and climate expert Samantha Gross, director of the Energy Security and Climate Initiative at the Brookings Institution, sheds light on the essentials of...

How often does Climate Sense release new episodes?

Climate Sense has 18 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.

Where can I listen to Climate Sense?

You can listen to Climate Sense on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.

Who hosts Climate Sense?

Climate Sense is created and hosted by The Brookings Institution.
URL copied to clipboard!