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With the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the Biden-Harris administration has committed a record amount of federal funds to encourage the advancement of clean energy, but myriad regulatory, political, and practical challenges remain to meet our climate goals. White House clean energy advisor John Podesta shares how the administration is implementing the IRA and work...
For more than 130 years, the National Geographic Society has pushed the boundaries of science by engaging the average citizen in a deeper understanding of the planet. Join two Nat Geo Fellows, Joel Sartore, renowned animal photographer, and Scott Loarie, director of a plant and animal identification app, to learn about the tools and strategies they're using to connect peop...
More than 8% of US greenhouse gas emissions originate in the health sector. Recognizing the urgency of change, almost 1,000 hospitals, industry organizations, and trade associations have embraced the federal government’s voluntary Health Sector Climate Pledge, promising to cut their emissions in half by 2030. Practical, cost-effective actions with dramatic payoffs include...
The threads that connect humans to their natural environments have frayed, and some have completely severed. In an attempt to mend those we still can, designers are forging meaningful connections with nature to make reparations. Their collaborative processes — working with nature and in teams across multiple disciplines — are optimistic, but urgent. In this session, learn...
How are business leaders navigating rising expectations from employees, investors, customers, and communities in a fractured political environment, while progressing on the long-term success of their companies? Hear from executives working in real time to balance competing interests, and about what they see ahead.
A historic opportunity to accelerate positive outcomes for the environment, communities, and shareholders may be within reach as unprecedented federal funding for sustainable initiatives provides innovation opportunities for the private sector. Join this panel to learn how to invest in climate and equity to benefit the bottom line, catalyze innovation, and attract and reta...
The way we produce food is getting a lot of attention these days, and for good reason. If current projections hold, we’ll have 9 billion mouths to feed by 2050 – 2 billion more than we have today. Our need to eat already poses serious risks to the natural systems that sustain us. Can we meet future needs without further degrading our environment?
As Patagonia celebrates its 50th anniversary, CEO Ryan Gellert reflects on the company’s legacy in the wake of a transformational decision to legally restructure and commit all profits to environmental causes.
Sustainability is the green buzzword of the decade, especially in the context of feeding a growing population while preserving the environment for the next generations. Unfortunately, the debate over how to address the global food challenge has set conventional agriculture and global commerce against local food systems and organic farms. This panel will explore what it mea...
Companies, and now investors, are looking to gauge long-term success by establishing higher standards around environmental, social, and governance performance for themselves and their portfolios in addition to financial returns. Does this approach have solid, palpable impact on social "good"?
The health effects of climate change sound a clarion warning that we must attend to a rapidly deteriorating environment. Polluted cities, severe droughts and flooding, and devastating storms are portents of a world in which risks to the health of the planet and the health of families are closely linked. We urgently need visionary and strategic leaders who can identify and...
Anyone who has ever had a pet understands how deeply connected human beings are to the animals who serve as our companions, lessen our stress, and perhaps offer a buffer against cognitive decline. Puppy play date, anyone? Honeybees help to protect our food supply, vision-impaired people rely not only on seeing-eye dogs but also on seeing-eye horses, and animal research has...
Cities are responsible for 70 percent of global carbon emissions, and by 2050, two out of every three people will live in one. Fortunately, cities are getting serious about environmental footprint — New York announced its own Green New Deal, Melbourne aims to be carbon neutral by 2020, and Los Angeles will use 100 percent renewable energy by 2045. Mayors are often more nim...
President Biden entered office identifying climate change as one of four historic crises facing the United States. Nearly two years later, detractors claim that a lack of urgency, the divisive state of Congress, and a combative Supreme Court could stifle his agenda. This conversation between Michael Regan, administrator of the EPA, and Gina McCarthy, the White House nation...
Imagine a world in which every kid in every city can go outside and explore the natural world. Urban ecology centers model outdoor play and promote connection, while restoring natural beauty to cities. How can urban leaders transform blighted parks into catalysts for social and environmental change? How can we spread this big idea to cities around the world? An expert pres...
Featured Ideas Festival Scholar includes Carlos Pierre. Over the past several years, responsible investing has evolved from an alternative concept to a mainstream approach. Investors ranging from pension funds to large asset managers to individual investors are increasingly focused on integrating environmental, social, and governance factors into investment decision makin...
Even if we stopped emitting carbon tomorrow, trillions of tons would remain in our atmosphere, causing climate change for generations. While natural, agricultural drawdown techniques are being deployed, high-tech carbon capture tools are getting major buzz in the environmental movement. From direct air capture to retrofitting power plants, what are the most promising solut...
In times of financial crisis, we turn to national treasuries and central banks for solutions. The true power of these institutions, however, lies in their ability to prevent crises, not only economic, but also social and environmental. This panel will explore how financial leaders are leveraging the power of the national purse to address climate change and food security, l...
No one is immune from the catastrophic storms, wildfires, heat waves, and drought that accompany climate change, but the risks are far greater for some populations than for others. Unstable housing, food insecurity, inadequate access to care, lack of tree canopy, and proximity to toxic emissions and other environmental hazards all intensify the health consequences. People...
It is no longer possible to separate the health of the planet from the health of its people. Disease patterns are changing as the climate does, and human health is at risk from loss of biodiversity, depleted water supplies, environmental toxins, and collapsing food systems. As the Rockefeller Foundation-Lancet Commission on Planetary Health states: “The continuing degradat...