Jonathan Foley: 2025 Schneider Award Winner

Jonathan Foley: 2025 Schneider Award Winner

Author: Climate One from The Commonwealth Club December 12, 2025 Duration: 1:01:16
Project Drawdown is the world’s leading science-based guide to climate solutions. According to Jonathan Foley, Project Drawdown’s Executive Director, they aim to be the Consumer Reports for climate change. “We synthesize every paper ever written in science, engineering, technical, economic literature, all the data, and bring it together and say, ‘Hey, does this actually work? And if so, how much would it cost? And how long would we have to wait for it?’”  Foley is not just an expert on the intricacies of hundreds of potential climate solutions; he’s also the winner of the 2025 Stephen H. Schneider Award for Outstanding Science Communication, and an expert at explaining complex ideas in easily digestible terms. As he said on a past Climate One episode, “The great news about addressing climate change is we also build a better world in the process. Imagine going to the doctor and they're like, ‘Wow, you're really sick and I'm gonna give you this medicine, and its side effects are, you're gonna feel better.’ Climate solutions are like that.” Episode Guests: Jonathan Foley, Executive Director, Project Drawdown Eliza Nemser, Executive Director, Climate Changemakers Highlights: 00:00 Intro 02:11 Jonathan Foley on Stephen Schneider 06:33 Jonathan Foley on balancing science and communication 13:09 Jonathan Foley on Project Drawdown 20:08 Jonathan Foley on less effective climate solutions 23:27 Jonathan Foley on the food industries effect on climate 26:22 Jonathan Foley on being attacked for speaking out about beef 34:20 Jonathan Foley on the need to stop doing “stupid” stuff 40:31 Greg Dalton on meeting Stephen Schneider 41:25 Greg Dalton on creating the Stephen H. Schneider Award for Outstanding Science Communication 45:52 Greg Dalton on Stephen Schneider’s legacy 47:14 Eliza Nemser on her journey to climate activism 49:12 Eliza Nemser on effective volunteerism  53:23 Eliza Nemser on finding your place in climate action Support Climate One by going ad-free! By subscribing to Climate One on Patreon, you’ll receive exclusive access to all future episodes free of ads, opportunities to connect with fellow Climate One listeners, and access to the Climate One Discord. Sign up today. Ad sales by Multitude. Contact them for ad inquiries at multitude.productions/ads Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The conversation about our changing planet is often reduced to headlines and political noise, but Climate One moves beyond that. Hosted by Greg Dalton, Ariana Brocious and Kousha Navidar, this podcast from The Commonwealth Club creates a space for the full, complex dialogue we need. Each episode features candid discussions with scientists, policymakers, activists, and thinkers who are on the front lines. The focus is on drawing connections-between personal action and economic systems, between daunting scientific reports and tangible community solutions. You’ll hear analysis that doesn’t shy away from the severity of our situation while actively exploring pathways for genuine progress, from technology and finance to culture and justice. This isn't about alarmism or easy answers; it's about equipping listeners with a deeper understanding of the intertwined challenges and opportunities. Tuning into this podcast means joining a crucial exploration of how we adapt, mitigate, and fundamentally rethink our relationship with the natural world. The dialogue here is built on the idea that confronting the climate emergency honestly, in all its facets, is the first necessary step toward shaping a livable future.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 50

Climate One
Podcast Episodes
Beyond the Rights of Nature: Land that Owns Itself [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:03:44
The “rights of nature” is the idea that if a corporation can have legal standing as a person, why can’t a river or a mountain? Thomas Linzey, one of the early architects of a legal framework for granting rights to nature…
ENCORE Dead Heat: The Danger Of Home Power Shutoffs [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:11
Summer is here, temperatures are rising — and so are electric bills. That also means many people are facing a severely overlooked issue: power shutoffs. According to a report by the U.S. Energy Information Administration…
When Your New Neighbor Is… a Data Center [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:01:40
Across the country, developers are racing to build huge new buildings to house computers to fuel the AI boom, creating an explosive demand for new energy. While some hyperscalers seek renewable energy, others are turning…
Making Solar Great Again [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:27
More and more, conservative voices are making the case that the U.S. can’t achieve energy dominance without solar power. Even the leading industry trade group is changing its strategy. Earlier this year, Politico reporte…
Medium Rare: What’s Next For Meat? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:05:01
Industrial agriculture accounts for a significant share of global emissions, but meat alternatives face real hurdles in becoming a mainstay of consumer diets. The hype around plant-based meat has cooled: hurt by price ga…
ENCORE: Cities Leading the Way [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 1:04:39
While the federal government has all but abandoned trying to address the climate crisis, cities around the world are stepping up. C40 is an international network of 97 cities representing 920 million people and 23% of th…
Fighting Fire with Fiery Passion: 2026 Goldman Prize Winners [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:17
The Goldman Environmental Prize is known as the Nobel for grassroots environmental champions, for good reason. Award-winners are earth defenders, often bucking entrenched systems and powerful interests in order to protec…
Protest and Beyond: Annie Leonard On What You Can Do [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 56:39
Protest is the ultimate in equal-opportunity political action. As Annie Leonard, former executive director of Greenpeace USA says, "Making change is like laying a stone path across the garden. Peaceful protest may be eve…