How the Private Sector is Leading the Clean Energy Revolution
Setup
What does it mean for large companies to be classified as “100 percent renewable?" What kinds of challenges does industry faces when it comes to going green? As we look down the road at our nation’s changing energy scenarios, complete with new sources of natural gas and increasing demand for renewables, a number of companies are making the kinds of energy consuming shifts that will address both economic and climate dilemmas. Drawing on her leadership experience as the former head of the EPA, Apple Vice President Lisa Jackson is driving the company’s effort to establish itself as an industry leader in clean energy, helping navigate its drive to being 100 percent renewable. Is Apple attempting to create the industry standard? What do the critics say? What challenges does Apple — and other firms with similar ambitions — face with goals to create all products using recycled or renewable materials?
- 2018 Festival
- Health
- Environment
Explore More
Health
![Meet 7 Women Leading the Way to a Brighter Climate Future](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/11e09403-1a70-4720-abb0-8c203f892106/GettyImages-1415703633.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=400&q=80&rect=738%2C0%2C3733%2C3733&w=400)
Women are crucial to the climate movement, but their voices are often underrepresented and their work goes under-supported. Meet just a few of the women from this year’s Aspen...
![10 Newsmaking Conversations from Aspen Ideas: Health 2024](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/58daefc2-333d-4d2e-b5b1-8ca0d98462be/240620_reception_001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=267&q=80&rect=0%2C0%2C4000%2C2667&w=400)
From the debate over reproductive rights to the epidemic of gun violence to the youth mental health crisis, this year's Aspen Ideas: Health sessions tackled many of today's mo...
![Extreme Heat: The Silent Killer of Climate Change](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/b5e2e176-6cbe-4d92-b593-011e59139c36/6.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C97%2C4651%2C2616&w=400)
Heat is now the top weather-related cause of death in the U.S., killing more people than hurricanes, floods and tornadoes combined. An environmental journalist and two city ch...
![There’s an Energy Transition Happening in Your Backyard](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/038a9839-e479-49fe-ab58-0fbb6194b7d8/energytransition.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C430%2C8256%2C4644&w=400)
Every transition comes with tradeoffs, and even clean energy carries negative consequences. As they mine for critical minerals or build solar arrays on sensitive land, clean e...
![Sci-Fi or Reality? Talking Tomorrow’s Climate Tech](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/67c1104a-0ac3-459e-9a92-d199aebe8b33/53821312503_cbf498aa31_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=600&q=80&rect=1292%2C0%2C2067%2C3100&w=400)
It sounds like sci-fi: Scientists are beaming solar energy from space, subbing seaweed for plastic and brightening clouds to reflect sunlight to lower temperatures in a warmin...
![Amazon Presents: How AI is Transforming Health Care](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/88dd2ba6-9d8d-4355-911f-e75f1e164753/240627_ai_healthcare_013.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C208%2C4000%2C2250&w=400)
Artificial intelligence is revolutionizing health care by improving patient navigation, telehealth and the speed of drug development. From enhancing patient and provider exper...
![Presented by GE Vernova: It’s Electrifying! Tech and Climate Reshape Everything, Everywhere, All at Once](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/a3e37e2c-0596-4e40-ac71-5a6f22b8749d/240626_electrifying_006.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C208%2C4000%2C2250&w=400)
Even as the clean energy transition is underway, AI and global development are demanding more energy than ever. What’s the best plan to bring massive amounts of zero- and low-...
![Mount Sinai Presents: Brain-Computer Interface Revolution](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/1f033dc8-4086-4ae8-9f58-448c89ffc1df/240625_braincomputer_009.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C207%2C4000%2C2250&w=400)
Brain-computer interfaces show potential to restore function to people impacted by incurable neurological conditions such as stroke, spinal cord injury, traumatic brain injury...
![Creating a World With People on the Spectrum](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/8283e9fe-6c1f-4f23-babe-0006cbcedd33/53816186173_f986a725ce_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=600&q=80&rect=1325%2C0%2C1968%2C2952&w=400)
Neurodivergent people make up 15% to 20% of the global population, and visionaries are busy trying to foster welcoming environments in areas like adaptive sports, fashion des...
![Climate of Hope](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/7a778d45-9072-483d-bc15-ec7c61ffac34/53817220503_5fae6aa65a_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C173%2C4651%2C2618&w=400)
Amid the stark realities of our planet's degradation, there are bright glimmers of hope in conservation efforts around the world. Paul Nicklen and Cristina Mittermeier use mas...
![Prudential Financial Presents: What Living to 100 Means for Work and Wealth](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/fceaec56-d6ae-43f2-9e24-6983a3cdfe40/workandhealth.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C485%2C4651%2C2616&w=400)
Across the globe, humans are living and working longer than ever — and today’s systems, governments and businesses aren’t prepared. Examine how we can reimagine work, wealth a...
![The $38 Trillion Dollar Question](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/3778bfb8-3af0-4481-bb4b-dbe117272b39/johnkerry.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C688%2C5504%2C3096&w=400)
In a recent op-ed, former U.S. climate envoy and secretary of state John Kerry declared that rich countries are failing to respond to the climate crisis. If extreme weather wi...
![Allstate Presents: Not a Drill — Transitioning to a Lower-Carbon World](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/d611c6df-e56f-4503-80aa-920b24aa3f29/240624_lowercarbonworld_020.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=600&q=80&rect=1112%2C0%2C1776%2C2664&w=400)
As society focuses on mitigating human climate impact, economies shift away from carbon-based energy sources — which impacts individuals, businesses and governments. Beyond su...
![Are We Ready For Pandemic X?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/05b0d43e-1ff9-4d23-9735-aee253157755/53814590409_91983fd81a_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C430%2C8256%2C4644&w=400)
Given what we learned from the global turbulence from COVID-19, are we any more prepared for the next pandemic? Author and journalist Michael Lewis and Adar Poonawalla, CEO of...
![Is There a Future for Oil and Gas?](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/3e0697fb-a5cc-41dc-b779-80f908d2f843/53813710096_1115f4aea8_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C312%2C6000%2C3375&w=400)
Renewables are on the rise, but so is fossil fuel consumption as global development demands more and more. Does the oil and gas industry have a role in reaching net-zero goals...
![Francis Collins on Science and Faith](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/6bfedb4f-4e98-45ef-a03c-fdc78698e0d5/53811234024_81d87a8491_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C0%2C5843%2C3289&w=400)
Few people are more deeply steeped in science than Francis Collins, former director of the National Institutes of Health and the groundbreaking Human Genome Project, and forme...
![Closing the Climate Gap for Girls and Women](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/7c58f9e1-944f-43e1-91a6-70ea591b4afe/53811270499_6a024c72b2_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=600&q=80&rect=873%2C0%2C2258%2C3380&w=400)
Climate change is a threat multiplier with a disproportionate impact on vulnerable populations. Girls and women, who are denied equitable access to education and economic oppo...
![Aspen Ideas: Health Closing Session](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/43030c8f-3f87-43e9-a2a1-f35ca0aab1c1/240623_closing_010.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C43%2C4000%2C2250&w=400)
Featuring inspiring conversations, the closing session is not to be missed. First, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy and Jennifer Ashton of ABC News explore the loneliness epi...
![Understanding Grief](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/2468836f-deab-46b8-b329-f9d2dd64c34e/53809707833_3f38e415da_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C902%2C5504%2C3091&w=400)
The experience of loss alters the map of the world imprinted on our brain, disrupting patterns and expectations as it struggles to form new ones. Grief is a kind of longing, n...
![How Genetic Data is Transforming Cancer and Other Diseases](https://aspenideasfestival.imgix.net/c09328de-b753-47f7-b77f-ba466819b598/53810267133_dbec28571d_o.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=min&fm=jpg&h=225&q=80&rect=0%2C0%2C4651%2C2618&w=400)
The idea of gathering DNA samples into a vast database in order to identify disease risks and breakthrough therapies was once a distant dream. Not long ago, immunotherapy seem...