loader from loading.io

New Venture Capital Models For Women & CleanTech – Cecile Blilious, Veteran Venture Investor, Venture ESG, European Women in VC

Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility

Release Date: 09/16/2025

Earth Day Career Advice From 6 Extraordinary Women Leaders show art Earth Day Career Advice From 6 Extraordinary Women Leaders

Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility

“Try as best as you can not to be fear-driven. I think we are so driven by fear that we're never going to be enough, that we aren't going to contribute enough….(Y)ou actually are enough just as you are, right? Take this day, do what you can. Impact the people around you.…Become partners in your career with unlikely people, people who don't think like you, people who aren't doing the same career as you. You'll get a lot more joy out of, I think, your career because of the cross-pollination.” Dr. Katherine Gergen-Barnett on Electric Ladies Podcast This Earth Day, we want to share...

info_outline
The State of Energy Today Might Surprise You - Lisa Jacobson, BCSE on the 2026 Energy Factbook show art The State of Energy Today Might Surprise You - Lisa Jacobson, BCSE on the 2026 Energy Factbook

Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility

“You see corporate procurement of clean energy, predominantly renewable energy, but there's fleet investments, there are efficiency improvements in buildings and on campuses underway….but it was a little different than what we'd seen in recent years. It wasn't just solar and wind. There was an interest in 24/7 reliable clean energy in particular by the tech industries, which won't surprise you, but things like nuclear, geothermal, other integrated technologies like solar and storage…So that's kind of an interesting set of dynamics because it's really diversifying the players in the...

info_outline
How To Talk How To Talk "Climate" To Keep People Safe – Allison Agsten, USC Center for Climate Journalism & Communications

Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility

“If there are people who are willing to talk to you about it, the first thing you got to do is listen….I grew up in a very rural area and it's very conservative also. And when I go home, I don't talk about climate change. I do talk about what's going on with hunting season. 'Oh, there's no deer this year. Why do you think that is? Tell me about the rain'….It is again about that pivoting and you have to understand what's important to the people you're talking to… I might say, 'I just upgraded my mom's generator. It's great because with all the outages we're having out here, now she can...

info_outline
How Carbon Credits Work – with Donna Lee, CEO & CoFounder, Calyx Global show art How Carbon Credits Work – with Donna Lee, CEO & CoFounder, Calyx Global

Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility

"What I knew about Carbon Credits having watched them for many years is that they're not always what they seem...So, Calyx Global was founded in 2021 to help companies navigate the space, to really understand….(i)t's a promise that somebody has reduced methane in that landfill or planted some trees thousands of miles away. So that's what Calyx Global is, we're a Carbon Credit Ratings Agency. But really what we're doing is, for every one of these assets, helping buyers understand what's underneath that, what the quality of that asset is.  Donna Lee on Electric Ladies Podcast  You've...

info_outline
Creativity & Relationships Help Secure Grants – Megan Pater, CEO/Founder of Fund Nation & ECE Solutions show art Creativity & Relationships Help Secure Grants – Megan Pater, CEO/Founder of Fund Nation & ECE Solutions

Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility

“Number one reason that people get denied and they didn't read the eligibility criteria. So yeah, very, very important …If you don't have the qualifications or something for something, you partner with somebody who does and you guys go after it together.… If you don't know something, that gives you a reason to call the vendor and start that conversation and get that personal relationship with them.…Relationships, relationships, relationships. It really is the key to grants. It's really not about what you write, it's about who you're speaking to ahead of time." Megan Pater on Electric...

info_outline
"Healthcare Without Harm" to People & Planet – Dr. Katherine Gergen-Barnett & Dr. Anna Goldman, Boston Medical Center

Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility

“Healthcare Without Harm is more of an advocacy organization that works with clinicians and other healthcare workers to reduce the environmental impact of healthcare and pollution as well as climate impacts. And then Practice Greenhealth advises hospitals on how to get there and they do this awards process…(which is) about having people aware of all these different metrics that impact your operational sustainability…(and) raise awareness among the people who are running the hospital and leadership about how they're using water, food waste, where they're buying their food from, their...

info_outline
New Nuclear Energy Is Growing Fast – Maria Korsnick, President and CEO, Nuclear Energy Institute show art New Nuclear Energy Is Growing Fast – Maria Korsnick, President and CEO, Nuclear Energy Institute

Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility

“I've been in this industry for 40 years and we have never been at a moment like we are today. …About 10 years ago, a little bit more than that, the narrative at that time was we were closing down plants…. Now the narrative today is, Hey, you know what? Some of those plants you shut down, we've changed our mind. How hard would it be to restart that?... All of these hyperscalers (Google, Amazon, e.g.) are figuring out partnerships and marriages, if you will, with nuclear and trying to help nuclear be brought to the marketplace….I mean, the demand is off the charts, and that's really the...

info_outline
How To Pressure Electeds For Climate, Clean Air – Dominique Browning, Mom's Clean Air Force show art How To Pressure Electeds For Climate, Clean Air – Dominique Browning, Mom's Clean Air Force

Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility

“We, the people we can definitely keep the pressure on, not only on our lawmakers, our governors, our mayors, our senators, our Congress people. We have to keep reminding them that we care about these issues…There's a real key also to the future reimagining, asking companies to reimagine themselves as energy companies, not oil companies or gas companies, but energy companies. So all of these pressure points are incredibly important. We all have favorite stores, favorite brands that we shop on. If you love Walmart writing to the customer services and to the president of Walmart saying,...

info_outline
How Hospitals Can Juggle 24/7 Care & Climate Impacts – Carol Gomes, CEO & COO of Stony Brook University Hospital show art How Hospitals Can Juggle 24/7 Care & Climate Impacts – Carol Gomes, CEO & COO of Stony Brook University Hospital

Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility

“I believe in the power of people wishing to volunteer for initiatives rather than assignment of duties and responsibilities and having people feel as though it's a chore… (They) serve as champions in their areas to educate their fellow peers on what it means to be sustainable, what they can do that's in their power to contribute to the outcomes….And then as we started to become more mature…we formed structured committees, we leveraged those champions on the units to participate. We made it enjoyable in terms of participating. We actually have contests… (I)t just breeds excitement...

info_outline
How Utilities Are Evolving While Keeping The Lights On – Nicole Pearson & Brad Johnson of Bentley Systems show art How Utilities Are Evolving While Keeping The Lights On – Nicole Pearson & Brad Johnson of Bentley Systems

Electric Ladies Podcast - Women Leaders Discuss Careers, Trends, Technologies and Innovation in Energy, Climate, and Corporate Responsibility

How Utilities Are Changing While Keeping The Lights On – Nicole Pearson & Brad Johnson of Bentley Systems   “The really great thing about electric utilities is that they maintain a singular focus almost regardless of what's going on around them. It's safety, reliability, resilience. So they'll adapt and flex…They're not going to take a risk that sacrifices safety, that sacrifices your light coming on….The difference now that I've noticed is their willingness to move forward with technology and change decades, long processes and workflows and legacy built systems……. because...

info_outline
 
More Episodes

I like to think about ESG not only as a risk management tool, but also as an opportunity. I think the, the flip side of risk is opportunity. So if we think that a diverse team is what will bring more innovation, more ideas, more, let's say different ways of looking at needs and products, then this is an opportunity….What about if we think about the way that people consume, what is the carbon footprint that we have?.... And how do you reduce it? Or maybe build technology that helps reduce your impact on the planet, or helps you reduce the amount of AI or cloud usage that you use? So I, I think that looking at ESG as a risk and, and as an opportunity tool is actually very good.” Cecile Blilious on Electric Ladies Podcast

 

In 2025 so far, 2.3% of venture capital funding went to companies founded by women, 2.3%. So that means 97.7% of the funding went to men. The percents have been in the same range for decades. Seriously. Think of all the innovations that are not getting funded due to this ridiculous bias. What can we do about it?

Listen to Cecile Blilious of Venture ESG and European Women in VC explain new financing models that could work to fund more innovative businesses, especially those founded by women – in this enlightening conversation with Electric Ladies Podcast host Joan Michelson.

 

You’ll hear about:

        What venture capital really is and how it works. How male and female VCs differ.

        Insights into ESG investing that address both the risks and the opportunities – reframing both

        New financing models we need and that they might look like.

        Plus, career advice, such as:

 

I think being clear about your values is very important. Where would you work and where wouldn't you?... Let's focus on one or two that are the most important things that are like showstoppers... Then in mid-career, what I see happen many times with women is that women don't apply to jobs…but if you don't apply, you're not even considered. So my advice would be, look at the next job that you'd like to have in your career path, and if you think that you're 50% qualified for it, apply because you are grow into the role

Cecile Blilious on Electric Ladies Podcast

 

Read Joan’s Forbes articles here.

 

You’ll also like:

·       Unlocking Capital For Women And Climate Solutions – Women Leaders In Finance And Investment, The Earth Day Women’s Summit

·       The SEC Climate Risk Disclosure Rules – Tara Giunta, Global Co-Chair of ESG & Sustainable Finance Practice at Paul Hastings law firm

·       Climate as a Geopolitical Security Emergency, with Svitlana Krakovska, Ph.D. and Mirian Villela, head of Earth Charter, a UN-founded organization and the Center for Education for Sustainable Development.

·       The Hidden Power of ESG – with Natalie Jaresko, Managing Director, EY Parthenon, former Finance Minister of Ukraine

Subscribe to our newsletter to receive our podcasts, blog, events and special coaching offers.

Thanks for subscribing on Apple Podcasts or iHeartRadio and leaving us a review!

Follow us on Twitter @joanmichelson