Turning Waste into Energy (and Wine) – Autumn Huskins, Finance Director, Hitachi Zosen Inova
Release Date: 03/18/2025
Artificial Intelligence (A.I) And The Climate - Stephanie Hare, Ph.D., Researcher, Broadcaster and Author of “Technology Is Not Neutral”
Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility
“(A.I.) is so energy intensive as a technology, and that's the thing that we have to get, the infrastructure of AI… Right now we do not have an electricity grid that is, that is built for this purpose. There's the water requirements of it as well. And we also need to just think about the energy, the actual fuel that's being used to fire up and power the electricity grid.” Dr. Stephanie Hare on Electric Ladies Podcast Artificial intelligence (AI) is ubiquitous today and advancing faster than we can imagine. It’s being used in many ways to mitigate and adapt to climate change, too, and...
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Energy Efficiency Saves Money & CO2 – Paula Glover, CEO of the Alliance To Save Energy
Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility
“Energy efficiency…is doing more, using less. The megawatt not used is the cheapest megawatt and there's so many things, either by using technology, old technology like insulation or digitalization, that allows us to really stretch what we can get out every single megawat, a kilowatt electron that we use. And so that's what we're talking about. If we had the kind of massive adoption that we need, we could get to a big 40% reduction.” Paula Glover on Electric Ladies Podcast With the Energy Star program and other energy efficiency programs under attack and misunderstood, we decided to...
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Career Advice From 5 Women Trailblazers – Hilary Doe, Cong. Chrissy Houlahan, Zara Summers, Tensie Whelan, & Claire Seaborn
Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility
“For anyone, women especially who are interested in the energy and climate space, I would say that you shouldn't feel that you need to choose between the public sector, the private sector, and the nonprofit sector. I've been able to continue to build my expertise in the energy and climate space, but from multiple different perspectives. My advice would be to just not feel that you need to pick one of those lanes and, and to take the risk to bounce between those different segments of our economy.” Claire Seaborn on Electric Ladies Podcast Summer is a good time to think about your next...
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Using Captured Carbon To Make Energy – Bjork Kristjansdottir, Carbon Recycling International
Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility
“Carbon Recycling International…is converting CO2 into sustainable methanol…(W)e have technology, which takes CO2 as a waste, and it takes hydrogen and turns it into methanol…and it is used today both like into chemicals. So, the chemical sector is a big consumer of methanol, which is a very large known product in the world today. …(and into) a sustainable fuel...playing a pretty big role in the energy transition.” Bjork Kristjansdottir on Electric Ladies Podcast As the Trump administration sends mixed signals on carbon capture technologies – keeping the tax credits for them...
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You Can Make A Difference Where You Are – Laur Hesse Fisher, MIT’s Environmental Solutions Initiative
Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility
“There are those individual actions that we can take. But if I can work with my community or work inside of my company, or if I can work inside of my house of worship and we can build some community and some action that way, it will have a much bigger impact than anything that I can do as an individual… The communities that they're already a part of, whether they're residential, like in their neighborhoods, or it's the nonprofits that they're a part of, or the places where they have other kinds of communities like religious communities, and start conversations there. What could we do as a...
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Recycled Steel Goes Mainstream - Tabitha Stine, General Manager, Energy Solutions, Nucor Corporation
Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility
“Our job is to recycle so that we can recover all of that scrap and goods that you and I are recycling in our garbage bins every week or recycling as we get new cars. And our job is to recover that because we make steel in a very clean and efficient process through what's called an electric arc furnace. So, we take all of that scrap, we melt it down, and we make new steel. It does not degrade. It has a continuous reusable life.…Depending on the different products of steel, that actually determines the recycled content that goes into them for the finishes and the quality of the steel that's...
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Unlocking Capital For Women And Climate Solutions – Women Leaders In Finance And Investment, The Earth Day Women’s Summit
Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility
“If you cannot change the system, change the frigging system… Women, when we have our money, are more likely to start an impact fund business or something. So, we have really got to get out of our way and just take the risk. " Tracy Gray at The Earth Day Women’s Summit 2025 Innovative financing models are urgently needed to tackle the climate crisis, but significant gaps persist. Research shows that women and people of color deliver stronger returns yet continue to be underrepresented. Meanwhile, the insurance industry must confront the mounting risks of climate...
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Climate Is A Security Emergency – From A Top Climate Scientist & A Geopolitical Expert
Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility
"The climate crisis has roots in fossil fuels, but at the same time, fossil fuels fund this Russian invasion to Ukraine. So it means this is a fossil fuel war. If we will actually fight against our overall actually dependency on fossil fuels in the same way we will fight against climate change." Svitlana Krakovska on Electric Ladies Podcast The climate emergency is a security threat, and a “threat multiplier,” as former Defense Undersecretary Sherri Goodman has written. Looking at security in the same way as it has been is no longer working. The old view leaves us very vulnerable....
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Food, Fashion & Ag vs. Climate Change – Voices From The Earth Day Women’s Summit
Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility
“Food systems have to do with everything from production to processing, distribution, and the utilization. Then of course, end of life for food systems which includes food waste. In the United States, 40% of the food that we produce goes to waste. This means with distribution challenges that not everybody has equitable access to the kinds of foods that they need and want, at the times that they need them." Robin Currey on Electric Ladies Podcast Climate change is disrupting our food and agriculture systems, including the critical supply chains that feed and clothe us. Yet,...
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Business Leaders Bridging The Climate Gap – Voices From The Earth Day Women’s Summit
Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility
“Most things when it comes to corporate sustainability do not happen in a vacuum. I am part of an environmental sustainability team, but we would not be able to accomplish anything without our energy teams, our network teams, and more. The ability to take what can be a complex idea and translate that into a compelling business case often comes down to dollars and cents. While it takes time, that's how we've been able to drive change.” Rosie Austin on Electric Ladies Podcast In a poll at The Earth Day Women’s Summit in Dallas, Texas, 100% of respondents said that business is...
info_outline“We’re giving [companies] the avenue to take something that historically has been an inconvenience and turn that into an opportunity to make them some money, whether that be selling energy to the grid, or putting energy back into the operations of their facilities. So, what could have cost them money in the past can now be a huge benefit. At the same time, you're doing something great for the world and our future.”
Autumn Huskins on Electric Ladies Podcast
Addressing climate change presents two big questions: How do we reduce waste and keep it out of landfills, and how can we power our electricity-dependent economy without exacerbating climate change? An innovative waste-to-energy technology in San Luis Obispo, California is diverting waste from landfills, creating exciting new revenue streams – and even helping make wine!
Listen to Autumn Hustins, Finance Director at Hitachi Zosen Inova (HZI), as she explores a renewable energy source that is providing clean power to ~600,000 homes and businesses in the local economy, with plans to grow.
You’ll hear about:
- How Hitachi Zosen Inova's waste-to-energy plant is converting agricultural and food waste into electricity for the local grid.
- New revenue streams that waste-to-energy innovations create for business and local communities.
- Impact of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) on the adoption of waste-to-energy projects.
- How the green energy transition is creating new jobs in places previously reliant on fossil fuels.
- Plus, the secret to a great career is surprisingly simple.
"You go to work every day in the job that you're in. You do your absolute best. You give your all to that particular position, and the positions will follow. I don't care what your role is. I don't care if you're the janitor or the CEO, I think you approach the job the same way and do the best that you can possibly do, and it'll work out.”
Autumn Huskins on Electric Ladies Podcast
Read Joan’s Forbes articles here.
You’ll also like:
- ICWS Webinar, Joan Michelson moderates an enlightening webinar with top leaders on The Future of the Energy Transition and the Grid.
- Gauri Singh, Deputy Director General of the International Renewable Energy Agency, on the deployment of clean energy around the world.
- Björk Kristjánsdóttir, COO/CFO of Carbon Recycling International, on turning CO2 into valuable products.
- Bethia Burke, President of The Fund For Our Economic Future, on the impact of green jobs on local economies.
- Vanessa Chan, former Chief Commercialization Officer of the Department of Energy, on funding the transition to clean energy.
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