We're Gonna Need A Bigger Battery
Malcolm Turnbull, Australia's 29th Prime Minister, joins Cleaning Up to kick off Season 16.
What happens when cheap solar flips the script on climate sceptics? Can pumped hydro really deliver the long-duration storage we need? And is “hope” a dangerous comforter in the race to net zero?
Welcome to the first episode of Season 16 of Cleaning Up, in whichMichael Liebreich sits down with Malcolm Turnbull — former Prime Minister of Australia, lawyer, statesman, energy investor, and climate champion. From leading Australia through fierce political battles over climate policy to spearheading renewable projects through Turnbull Renewables, Turnbull offers a rare insider’s perspective on the global clean energy transition.
Turnbull and Liebreich explore the clash between optimism and realism in climate action: why cheap solar is reshaping politics, the promise and pitfalls of green hydrogen, and whether pumped hydro could be the long-duration storage solution the world needs.
Along the way, they reflect on U.S. politics under Trump, trade negotiations without American leadership, and why “hope is not a strategy” when it comes to energy security.
Listen to the episode now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or watch the video version on YouTube.
Leadership Circle
We’re pleased to announce two new members of Cleaning Up’s Leadership Circle, Arup — the global planning, design and engineering firm — and Cygnum Capital — an investment bank and asset manager focusing on Africa. To find out more about the Leadership Circle, visit cleaningup.live.
Graph Gone Wrong
In the Malcolm Turnbull episode, the graph we showed at 30:11 had some rendering issues that caused it to appear incorrectly. Alas, we can’t change it in the YouTube video, so here’s the correct version. Sorry for that.
