š CAT 211 - 2023-03-17
CAT 211 - 2023-03-17
Hey CATs,
Welcome to issue 211 of the ClimateAction.tech (CAT) Newsletter - your weekly summary of what's happening inside the CAT community, and in the wider world of climate and tech. New to CAT or looking to re-discover the community? Try outĀ our onboarding checklist.
Remember you can unsubscribe from this newsletter at any time - the link is at the bottom.
Stay safe & healthy š š š±
CAT Community News
š Get involved
Share our LinkedIn post or post about our member survey outcomes in your own words!
āļø From the blog
This week we published Member survey: How CAT impacts members
š§ Knowledge base nosedive
Climate courses, programs, and degrees: Are you looking to upskill or take a climate deep dive? Log into the CAT knowledge base with your CAT Slack account to explore this list of climate-related courses recommended by CAT members. If you see anything missing, add your contribution directly to the page and help a fellow CAT learn something new.
#ļøā£ Slack channel highlights
- #greener-design:Ā J sharedĀ a dither image generator too
- #greener-data-ai:Ā D sharedĀ an articleĀ (+ PDF version for those who aren't Atlantic subscribers) aboutĀ AI taking water from deserts
- #greener-infra: Lots of folks areĀ discussingĀ theĀ Technology Carbon StandardĀ which was recently released (thanksĀ M for starting the conversation)
- #mobility:Ā SĀ shared aĀ study about promoting active travel in citiesĀ and R sharedĀ an articleĀ about how Norway became so EV friendly
ā¤ļø Help a CAT
M isĀ looking for course recommendationsĀ for sustainability education directed at tech employees
S isĀ looking for any other user researchersĀ in the community
S is looking for CATs in the Netherlands (Woudenberg or Utrechtse Heuvelrug municipalities) toĀ join a local XR chapter
š CAT events
Wed, Mar 20 - Vienna [in person]:Ā AsĀ proposedĀ byĀ @Bjƶrn GanslandtĀ in ourĀ #local-austriaĀ channelnFri, May 17 - Zurich [in person]:Ā Zurich hackathonĀ (for more info seeĀ Fiona's message on Slack)
Local events were shared in #local-germany,Ā #local-california,Ā #local-boston,Ā #local-chicago,Ā #local-munich,Ā #local-new-york, andĀ #local-italy. CAT volunteer Elisa also started a Climate Events in London Outline page! Please add to it!
š© Community networking
Get to know other CATs and make some friends in the community.Ā Every 2 weeks, we match 2-3 CATs so you can connect over a quick 30-minute call. Simply joinĀ #cat-roulette, pick your region and wait for a message fromĀ DonutĀ about your match! Our next round of matches will go out onĀ Fri, Mar 29. More info
Media, events, and news
šŗ CAT recommendations
š± A cutting from Branch
Open call for Branch Issue 8 (Spring 2024)
The open call for Branch magazine has closed! Remember though - there are still 7 issues worth on Branch website that have been created over the years, all ready for you to read. The site design is an open source wordpress theme, and pull requests are accepted. There a handful of issues open on the github repo for the Branch theme, so if you know your way around wordpress they may be of interest.
ā¶ļø CAT videos
10-15 minute videos providing accessible explainers to climate related issues.
Planet A: The problem with the carbon tax
Burning carbon, for example in the form of coal, produces cheap energy ā but also tons of emissions. Why don't we just tax that? Many regions and countries are already doing just that. Can a carbon tax stop us from polluting?
š¤Ā Podcasts
The latest climate-related podcast episodes. Don't forget, if you're looking around, there's a list of podcasts maintained by CATs
Outrage and Optimism 235. SOTU: Unpacking Biden's Vision and The IRA
This week, we bring you a US democracy special, discussing Joe Biden's energetic State of the Union Address in which climate action played a significant role, and also the new guidelines from the Securities and Exchange Commission, a move which has seen the Commission attract a slew of legal challenges from both sides of the climate divide. The hosts ask: can Biden's campaign for presidency in 2024 unite the partisan divide around climate change and if not, how can we protect the progress that the IRA has already made in the US in the face of a Trump victory?
Catalyst with Shayle Khan: Climate techās tough year in the public markets
Two major indicators of climate tech stocks ā the S&P Clean Energy Index and the MAC Global Solar Index ā are significantly trailing the overall market. They've been declining for months, down from their mid-pandemic highs when they performed far better than the rest of the economy.
So what happened to climate tech investments in the public markets? And what do these investments tell us about the coming year for climate tech?
The Big Switch: Part 3 - The High Stakes for Battery Ingredients
In this episode, we dig into step two of the supply chain: processing all those minerals into usable ingredients for batteries. Why are countries so keen on building giant processing facilities? And can we process all the minerals we need to fight climate change in a responsible way?
Environment Variables: This Week In Green Software - Anne Currie and Asim Hussein
This week, Chris Adams is joined by Asim Hussain and Anne Currie for an engaging chat on the present and future of legislation around AI and Green Software. Our guests share their hot takes on various topics such as the usefulness of proxies in measurement. With backgrounds in climate and tech, and a future full of green energy, they share their insights into what we might expect, and hope for, from the future.
Greenio #34 - Carbon aware computing: a false good idea? with Hannah Smith and Ismaƫl Velasco
In our latest episode, Hannah Smith, the COO of the Green Web Foundation, and Ismael Velasco, the founder of the Adora Foundation, highlight the potential pitfalls of Carbon Aware Computing a strategy that aims to reduce carbon emissions by aligning software operations with the carbon intensity of the energy grid. While this approach has gained traction among the IT industry, including giants such as Apple, Microsoft, and Google, Hannah and Ismael discuss with our host Gaƫl Duez its complexities and limitations.
ļø
š Submitted events
Want an event listed here? Use this event listing form to submit the details so we can add it in the newsletter.
Tue Mar 19 2024 - Scaphandre & Boavizta - A journey across the environmental materiality of digital services
This talk is about the state of the art of the environmental impacts assessment of digital services based on the open-source and open-data assets co-constructed over the last three years in open source communities, research networks and public and private organizations.
Mon Mar 25 2024 - Climate Career Week
5 days. 20+ online events. All to help you work in climate. All free.
Discover how your career can help solve climate change through five days of free virtual workshops, panels, networking events, and more.
See the whole schedule from March 25-29th at ClimateCareerWeek.org
Tue Mar 26 2024 - London Climate Meetup
šæ Working in climate or sustainability? š Meet and network others working in climate š¤ Mentor or share your experience and advise others š Looking for your next opportunity?
Come support and network with current & future climate professionals on their journeys š
Thu Apr 18 2024 - Green IO Singapore
The go-to conference where responsible technologists based in South-East Asia can get the latest insights from thought leaders in Tech Sustainability and hands-on feedback from practitioners scaling Green IT.
Thu Apr 25 2024 - Eco Compute 2024
Discover EcoCompute, the first engineering conference on sustainability in hardware & software! Join us in Munich on April 25-26 at the House of Communication. Immerse in cutting-edge talks, connect with industry leaders, explore practical solutions. https://www.eco-compute.io/
Fri May 17 2024 - Climate Solutions Intensive ā A two-day deep dive into strategy, scenarios, and systems thinking (California)
The course delves into climate solutions, impacts, and system structures. Gain clarity on high-leverage actions you or your team can take to address the climate and equity challenges, using En-ROADSāa global simulator Climate Interactive co-developed with MIT
š° News Highlights
The Guardian: Europe unprepared for rapidly growing climate risks, report finds
Europe is not prepared for the rapidly growing climate risks it faces, the European Environment Agency (EEA) has said in its first risk assessment. From wildfires burning down homes to violent weather straining public finances, the report says more action is needed to address half of the 36 significant climate risks with potentially severe consequences that it identifies for Europe. Five more risks need urgent action, the report says.
Inside Climate News: New Study Shows Planting Trees May Not Be as Good for the Climate as Previously Believed
The climate benefits of trees storing carbon dioxide is partially offset by dark forests' absorption of more heat from the sun, and compounds they release that slow the destruction of methane in the atmosphere, the research shows.
The Carbon Brief: Analysis: UK emissions in 2023 fell to lowest level since 1879
The UK's greenhouse gas emissions fell by 5.7% in 2023 to their lowest level since 1879, according to new Carbon Brief analysis. The last time UK emissions were this low, Queen Victoria was on the throne, Benjamin Disraeli was prime minister, Mosley Street in Newcastle became the first road in the world with electric lighting.
SemiAnalysis: AI Datacenter Energy Dilemma - Race for AI Datacenter Space
The boom in demand for AI clusters has led to a surge in focus on datacenter capacity, with extreme stress on electricity grids, generation capacity, and the environment. There is plenty of discussion on where the bottlenecks will be ā How large are the additional power needs? Where are GPUs being deployed? What is the mix of power generation types such as natural gas, solar, and wind? Is this even sustainable or will the AI buildout destroy the environment? Today let's answer these questions, with the first half of the report free, and the 2nd half is available to subscribers below.
India calls for $1 trillion per year climate finance from next year, submits its proposal to the UNFCCC
India in its latest submission to the UN climate body has called for developed countries to provide "at least" $1 trillion per year in climate finance to developing countries from 2025 for taking required actions to face the challenges of global warming. It's not only a jump from the existing goal of $100 billion per year but also in sync with what the G20 New Delhi Declaration estimated it last year. India in its submission also reminded the rich nations of their "unmet $100 billion target" and urged them to take lessons from their failure while finalising new commitments.
ClimateActionTech: Sustainability, a surprisingly successful KPI: GreenOps survey results
The findings from the first project supported by the CAT mini-grant fund is live, in the form of research you can use to share about how a drive to incorporating an awareness of climate manifests in the work of technologists. For the nerds: The underlying questions and data are linked for your own analysis too.
The survey got 2,680 responses from all corners of the globe, covering a diverse range of roles.Ā The results make fascinating reading, highlighting changing priorities, evolving motivations, and importantly showcasing how personal commitments and ethical beliefs are beginning to shape the future of IT.Ā
Jobs
Remember only jobs listing salary ranges are listed here - to get your job listed, you need to list a salary range. Folks can still look in the #jobs channel.
TransitionZero - Product Manager - Ā£ 44,286.17 - Ā£51,808.55 - Permanent - Onsite only
We are a climate analytics not-for-profit established in 2021. We're building easy to use energy transition modelling software to give governments, businesses and investors the tools to understand and decide how to transition to carbon free energy. The Product Manager will work collaboratively with the Head of Product on the product strategy and roadmap for our energy systems modelling software. A key aspect of the role will be to drive usage of and engagement with the product.
TransitionZero - Product Owner - Ā£44,286.17 - Ā£51,808.55 - Permanent - Onsite only
We are a climate analytics not-for-profit established in 2021. We're building easy to use energy transition modelling software to give governments, businesses and investors the tools to understand and decide how to transition to carbon free energy. The Product Owner will work collaboratively with the Head of Product on our energy systems modelling software to collate, analyse, prioritise and translate requirements into user stories and detailed specifications for implementation by front-end and back-end development teams.
Icebreaker One - Senior Project Manager - Perseus - Up to Ā£550/day - Contract - 2.5 days/wk to December 2024 - Totally remote
There are more than 5.9 million Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in the UK, accounting for an estimated Ā£2.3 trillion in turnover. However, there is not yet a standard for SMEs to follow when reporting greenhouse gas emissions. Perseus is developing whole-of-market solutions to create rapidly scalable, low-effort, low-friction sustainability reporting. As part of this work, Bankers for Net Zero (B4NZ) and Icebreaker One are running Steering, Advisory and Working Groups in 2024 to inform the development of an environmental, social, and governance (ESG) data ecosystem which accelerates the transition to net zero. The Senior Project Manager will play a key role in ensuring we meet our goal of a working pilot implementation by the end of 2024. Applications close 9am UK time, March 4.
Twist - Senior Fullstack Dev - 75-90k - Permanent - Totally remote
Twist is a software company that is helping unlock financing sustainable assets and innovative business models. Think electric truck, heat pumps and batteries. Our role is to assist banks in effectively deploying debt capital towards these ventures. By compiling comprehensive risk and environmental data, we enable banks to accurately assess, monitor and simulate both the risk and impact of their investments. Read about our mission here.
We are looking for a Full Stack Developer to join our small team to help build the Twist platform. You'll be part of a core team that's responsible for the full software development life cycle, from conception to deployment. We need a candidate who is comfortable owning and running what they build. We're looking for someone whose comfortable with some or all of the technologies we use.
Elemental Excelerator - Senior Investment Analyst - $67,100 - $108,300 - Permanent - Flexible - remote ok
Elemental is looking for a highly organized, experienced, and mission-driven individual to join the Portfolio Team. The Senior Investment Analyst will play a crucial role in identifying, evaluating, and supporting investments in climate tech companies. The successful candidate will be responsible for conducting thorough due diligence, financial analysis, market research, and providing strategic insights to drive investment decisions that align with our mission and goals. For this position, we are looking for an individual with strong financial acumen and a demonstrated passion for working with climate companies who can support our due diligence efforts on startups working across the full stack of climate tech financing options, including venture capital, debt and equity financing, and project finance.
Global Witness - Senior Data Investigations Advisor - Ā£53,856 - Permanent -
Are you looking for an opportunity to put your data skills to use in the fight against climate change? The climate and human rights NGO Global Witness is looking for a new Senior Data Investigation Advisor to work closely with our Forests campaign.
Our Data Investigators have used a diverse range of tools and techniques, including data visualisation, data analysis, bots, and interactive storytelling, to highlight the role the role of corporations in worsening the climate crisis. The role will find engaging and robust ways of analysing and presenting the results from financial and deforestation data. Our Data Investigators have worked with the Forests team to produce reports such as Banks, Beef and the Brazilian Amazon, and tools such as our Brazil Big Beef Watch bot.
Technical University of Berlin - Research Software Engineer for Open Source PyPSA Energy System Modelling Tool - E13 TV-L (4188-6037 ā¬/month gross, depending on experience) - Contract - Flexible - remote ok
You will help develop Python for Power System Analysis (PyPSA), one of the leading open source energy modelling frameworks. PyPSA is used around the world by various research institutes, network operators, consultancies, governmental and non-governmental organisations to understand future energy infrastructure requirements for reaching climate neutrality.
https://github.com/pypsa/pypsa
The position is funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) via its research software funding initiative. You will perform regular software maintenance tasks, improve the user-friendliness of the PyPSA toolbox, work towards enhanced test coverage and better validation of all functionality, develop new functionality to improve accessibility, extend training materials and documentation, review and integrate community contributions, support the user and developer communities, simplify and refactor parts of the code base, prepare new software releases, and organise annual user meetings.
Marble - Founder in Residence, Geothermal Anywhere - 2.5-3K per month - Contract - Flexible - remote ok
Dive into the geothermal revolution and help unlock clean, sustainable energy for our planet. We're on the hunt for entrepreneurial engineers/scientists from geothermal, oil & gas, or similar sectors. If you're passionate about innovation and ready to explore cutting-edge approaches to power the net zero economy, we want you.
Job title: Founder in Residence, Geothermal
Solar and Energy Loan Fund (SELF) - One - $100-$130k commensurate w/experience - Permanent - Flexible - remote ok
SELF finances climate resiliency, renewable energy, clean transportation, and water conservation projects. SELF is leveraging technology to expand its Green Home Loan program across the United States.
Elemental Excelerator - Senior Director of Financial Planning and Analysis - $125,000 to $238,000 / year - Permanent - Flexible - remote ok
Elemental is seeking an experienced and forward-thinking financial planning and analysis professional to join our team. This new team member will be an innovative, collaborative, and communicative problem solver who understands the leverage to be gained from financial data in driving organizational results.This newly crafted role will develop and lead new financial processes and analyses in order to substantially scale our team and impact.
This position will report to the Chief Financial Officer. The role will be tasked with developing financial plans and reports that serve all of the various units within the organization including philanthropic fund development, government grant management, and the portfolio company investment operation.
ExpectAI - Full Stack Engineer & Data Scientist - Ā£35-45K, commensurate with experience - Permanent -
Join me in building ExpectAI's climate action platform that enables our customers to find and take profitable decarbonisation actions with confidence
Icebreaker One - Trust Framework Solutions Architect - Up to Ā£500/day - Contract - 3 days/wk until Dec 2024 - Totally remote
Icebreaker One is a UK-headquartered non-profit working to improve data sharing between organisations in order to accelerate the transition to net zero. Inspired by the explosion of financial service innovation brought about by Open Banking, we are applying the same model, known as a Trust Framework, to collaboratively design, govern and operate secure data sharing infrastructure across the economy. The Trust Framework Solutions Architect will help organisations from startups to PLCs understand and participate in these ecosystems from a technical perspective.
Support our work
You can support us financially onĀ Open Collective.