🌍 CAT Newsletter 214 - 2024-04-07
CAT 214 - 2024-04-07
Hey CATs,
Welcome to issue 214 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 out our onboarding checklist.
Remember you can unsubscribe from this newsletter at any time - the link is at the bottom.
Stay safe & healthy 😌 💚 🐱
CAT Community News
🙋 Get involved
2min: Complete this quick survey on digital sustainability efforts within your organization to support the Ecoweb project in advancing a greener web. Learn more about the Ecoweb project here.
5min: Share our Ecoweb survey via LinkedIn to help us gather as much valuable insight as possible. Your participation makes a difference!
7min: Submit song suggestions for a Branch CAT-playlist. To understand more about this idea or see some prompts, head over to this google form or check out Hannah's post on Slack.
✏️ From the blog
@Alja Isaković wrote a post about our knowledge base. Meet the CAT knowledge base: A resource that supports community learning and action.
🧠 Knowledge base nosedive
Behavior & Psychology: Are you looking for actions & resources that can help you cope with challenging emotions evoked by the climate crisis? Log into the CAT knowledge base with your CAT Slack account to explore resources recommended by CAT members. And join the #behavior-psychology channel on Slack to further discuss coping strategies and recommendations.
📅 CAT events
Fri, May 17 - Zurich [in person]: Zurich hackathon (for more info see Fiona's message on Slack)
Tue, May 21 - Vienna [in person]: Proposed meetup by @Björn Ganslandt in #local-austria
Other local events were shared in #local-aotearoa, #local-australia, and #local-dc.
🍩 Community networking
Get to know other CATs and make some friends in the community. Every 2 weeks, we match 2-3 CATs so you can connect over a quick 30-minute call. Simply join #cat-roulette, pick your region and wait for a message from Donut about your match! Our next round of matches will go out on Fri, Apr 12. More info
💚 Volunteer with us
We need YOU! Help write and curate a section in this very newsletter. Reach out to @Sandra if you can spare 30mins every week to help!
Media, events, and news
😺 CAT recommendations
🌱 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.
▶️ CAT videos
10-15 minute videos providing accessible explainers to climate related issues.
Simon Clark: How bad are electric bikes for the environment?
What is the environmental impact of building an e-bike? When people ride an e-bike, what are they no longer doing? Is an e-bike worse for the planet than a regular bike? In this video I talk industry experts and consult the academic literature on the net impact of electric bikes. The result may surprise you!
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🎤 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 238. Impatient for Change with Hannah Ritchie
This week, the hosts welcome Hannah Ritchie, Deputy Editor at Our World in Data and a Senior Researcher at the University of Oxford as our guest and discuss her book 'Not the End of the World, How We Can Be the First Generation to Build a Sustainable Planet'. In this compelling episode, join the hosts and special guest Hannah as they delve into the intricate dynamics of data, cautious optimism, and doom narratives within the climate community.
Shift Key: A Skeptic's Take on AI and Energy Growth
Will the rise of machine learning and artificial intelligence break the climate system? In recent months, utilities and tech companies have argued that soaring use of AI will overwhelm electricity markets. Is that true — or is it a sales pitch meant to build more gas plants? And how much electricity do data centers and AI use today? In this week's episode, Rob and Jesse talk to Jonathan Koomey, an independent researcher, lecturer, and entrepreneur who studies the energy impacts of the internet and information technology. We discuss why AI may not break the electricity system and the long history of anxiety over computing's energy use.
The Big Switch: Part 5: The Battery Recycling Dilemma
In this episode, we'll visit a recycling facility, learn how battery recyclers are evolving into battery component manufacturers, navigate the complexities of turning dead batteries into new ones, and explore the concept of circularity.
Environment Variables: Greening Low Code
In this episode of Environment Variables, host Chris Adams engages in a fascinating discussion with Marjolein Pordon, a quality consultant at Praegus, about the exciting synergy between sustainability and low code platforms.
Green IO #35 - Cybersecurity and sustainability: friend or foe? with Mary Prokhorova and Michael J. Oghia
In this episode Gaël Duez invited two experts on the field, Mary Prokhorova from InDevLab and Michael Oghia from Datacenter Changemakers, to discuss the nuances of cybersecurity and sustainability's relationship.
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📅 Submitted events
Want an event listed here? Use this event listing form to submit the details so we can add it in the newsletter.
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.
Mon Apr 22 2024 - ClimateCon Boulder 2024
The second ever ClimateCon! in Boulder will be an engaging and unforgettable day focused on sustainable solutions to combat climate change. There will be 20+ panels to discuss the latest in climate innovation.
Wed Apr 24 2024 - Simplifying Nature with Origami & AI
An in-person event in Denver Colorado to explore different ways to represent the natural world, including using AI to tell stories of climate change and origami to represent the formation of galaxies! 🤯
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/
Thu May 16 2024 - Climate Action Week Sydney - Does Cloud Co$t the Earth?
"Does Cloud Cost the Earth?", Every decision in the cloud has a 'cost, an economic cost, and an environmental cost. We're asking if decision making is costing businesses and the planet more than it should. Is it the technology or is it the way we are using it?
Thu May 16 2024 - Building a Climate Action Habit Into a Busy Life
Whether you're at the start of your climate and nature journey, or you've been taking action for a while but feel in a bit of a rut, this session will leave you feeling energised and ready to be part of building a better world. Use code CAT for a free ticket.
Fri May 17 2024 - Climate Solutions Intensive — 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-ROADS—a global simulator Climate Interactive co-developed with MIT
📰 News Highlights
Le Monde: Macron and Lula launch green investment plan for Amazon
French President Emmanuel Macron kicked off a visit to Brazil on Tuesday, March 26, with the launch of a billion-euro Amazonian green investment plan alongside his counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
The Guardian: Boom in mining for renewable energy minerals threatens Africa's great apes
Researchers applaud move away from fossil fuels but say more must be done to mitigate effects on endangered species.
Project Syndicate: The Right Response to China's Electric-Vehicle Subsidies
While the availability of cheap electric vehicles is good news for the planet and for consumers everywhere, it is bad news for shareholders and employees of Western car companies, and both the United States and Europe are considering imposing import tariffs on Chinese EVs. But tariffs are the wrong approach, as detailed by economists Gernot Wagner and Shang-Jin Wei.
The Independent: Greenpeace deliver 'world's tiniest violin' to Shell CEO after lawsuit
Greenpeace attempted to deliver the "world's tiniest violin" to Shell's CEO in response to a lawsuit against the campaign group.The oil and gas company is suing the charity for $2.1m in damages over a fossil fuel protest in the North Sea in 2023. It has become known as the "Cousin Greg" lawsuit, referencing a Succession scene in which Nicholas Braun's character threatens to sue Greenpeace.
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 - £ 44,286.17 - £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.
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.
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.
SELF - Head of Software Engineering - 100,000-130,000 - Permanent - Flexible - remote ok
We are America's first local nonprofit CDFI/ Green Bank. SELF's mission is to provide access to affordable and innovative financing for a just and equitable transition to a clean energy economy. SELF finances climate resiliency, renewable energy, clean transportation and water conservation projects with a focus on serving low- and moderate-income (LMI) communities.
SELF is the only hybrid green bank/CDFI with a proprietary consumer lending program for climate related home improvements tailored to meet the needs and ability to repay of LMI residents. SELF is leveraging technology to expand its Green Home" loan program across the United States.
We are looking for a founding head engineer to help build & scale our core financial platform to support a historic growth opportunity.
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 - £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 £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.
Terawatt Infrastructure - Senior Manager, Grants & Incentives - $160,000-$180,000 - Permanent - Onsite only
Looking for someone to lead critical grant and incentive acquisition and execution strategies in the EV space! Terawatt is an EV fleet charging company looking to decarbonize fleet transportation.
Support our work
You can support us financially on Open Collective.
MONTHLY CAT THANK YOU - MARCH
:memo: For adding knowledge to Outline: @Elisa @melissa @Ben Carpenter @Alja Isaković @Rose Teague @Mike Heavers
:moneybag: For supporting us financially on Open Collective: @Poppe @Ben Dodd @Thibaud Colas @Michael Napper @Mike Gifford (CivicActions) @Chris Pointon @fershad @Todd @James Crowley @asim @Jeff Burka @HeatherB @Nic Wistreich @Sam @Aydin Mir Mohammadi and all you lovely anonymous CATs
:heart: For volunteering in the community: @Hannah @roundcrisis @Siôn @Brett Duboff @Elisa @Łukasz Mastalerz @Claire Thornewill @Owen Rogers @Tom Kennes @Aïda @Caroline Schneider @Nat Darke @Clare Tomassian (she/her) @Mobolaji @Christina @Ben Tongue @Dan @Gaël Duez @Poppe @April Bates @Henry Deacy @Guillaume @matt @Evan Hahn @Alja Isaković @Bee Flaherty @Mary Ma @Marlo
And an extra special shoutout to @Łukasz Mastalerz @Claire Thornewill and @Owen Rogers who've reached their 1-year volunteering anniversary last month!!!
Want to get to know the volunteers? Check out the volunteer profiles on our blog