No miracles needed
Prof. Mark Jacobson
You certainly hear a lot about the energy transition (especially if you listen to this podcast). Is it a dream to reach 100% renewables? How do we go from here to there? What are the obstacles towards this goal? To address those questions, I had the fantastic opportunity to interview Prof. Mark Jacobson from Stanford University.
Mark Jacobson is a Professor since 1994. He mainly works on two fields: air pollution and energy (you’ll hear in the interview how Mark connects the two). His work has a profound impact on the research community but also at the business and political levels. He is one of the few scientists having been on the talk show Late Night with David Letterman and at the same time if you have a look at his academic track record, you’ll be amazed, it shows the breadth and depth of his expertise.
I would have loved recording a discussion for half a day but we only had a bit more than an hour so I’ll dive into some important aspects for me but I strongly suggest you to check out the show notes and read some of the many works he has authored.
[0:00:00] Chapter 1 : Air pollution
[0:26:38] Chapter 2 : Wind - Water - Sunlight (WWS)
[1:10:36] Chapter 3 : Personal question
URL of this episode : https://www.podcastics.com/podcast/episode/no-miracles-needed-286379/
Subscribe for the last updates : http://eepurl.com/hVeLPz
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
You certainly hear a lot about the energy transition (especially if you listen to this podcast). Is it a dream to reach 100% renewables? How do we go from here to there? What are the obstacles towards this goal? To address those questions, I had the fantastic opportunity to interview Prof. Mark Jacobson from Stanford University.
Mark Jacobson is a Professor since 1994. He mainly works on two fields: air pollution and energy (you’ll hear in the interview how Mark connects the two). His work has a profound impact on the research community but also at the business and political levels. He is one of the few scientists having been on the talk show Late Night with David Letterman and at the same time if you have a look at his academic track record, you’ll be amazed, it shows the breadth and depth of his expertise.
I would have loved recording a discussion for half a day but we only had a bit more than an hour so I’ll dive into some important aspects for me but I strongly suggest you to check out the show notes and read some of the many works he has authored.
[0:00:00] Chapter 1 : Air pollution
[0:26:38] Chapter 2 : Wind - Water - Sunlight (WWS)
[1:10:36] Chapter 3 : Personal question
URL of this episode : https://www.podcastics.com/podcast/episode/no-miracles-needed-286379/
Subscribe for the last updates : http://eepurl.com/hVeLPz
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Socials & useful links :
- Personal website: https://web.stanford.edu/group/efmh/jacobson/
- Twitter : https://twitter.com/mzjacobson
- Wikipédia : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Z._Jacobson
- Google Scholar : https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=f0efcBgAAAAJ&hl=en
- ResearchGate : https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Mark-Jacobson-2
[0:00:00] Chapter 1 : Introduction & Air pollution
[0:01:55] What is air pollution ?
[0:02:47] We often hear about particles (‘PM 2.5’) and Ozone. Why are they so important ?
[0:09:00] Is brown carbon important ?
[0:13:22] Both brown carbon and black carbon are particles. However, they still play a role in the greenhouse effect. Could you tell us more about those ?
[0:16:31] Could you give more details about the way they affect our bodies ?
[0:19:05] Some of the particles are formed out of gasses, so it is not as easy as filtering them out, right ?
[0:24:02] How is the cost of life computed ?
[0:26:38] Chapter 2 : Wind - Water - Sunlight (WWS)
Mark’s website : https://web.stanford.edu/group/efmh/jacobson/
WWS for the 50 states of the USA : https://web.stanford.edu/group/efmh/jacobson/Articles/I/WWS-50-USState-plans.html
100% Clean and Renewable WWS All-Sector Energy Roadmaps for 139 Countries of the World : https://www.cell.com/joule/pdf/S2542-4351(17)30012-0.pdf
[0:28:15] How should we address the issue of a high share of renewables ?
[0:37:22] Will the increase of electrification make things easier ?
[0:37:43] In your study, how do you account for the cost of the transition ? (Economical cost, environmental impact of the infrastructure, land use, …)
[0:42:16] I'm a little worried about the way the market is built around fossil fuels. What do you think about this ?
[0:46:10] In your plan, you use batteries for aircraft and ships. Isn’t it optimistic ?
[0:55:15] You targeted 80% of Renewable Energy Sources by 2030. Is it reverse engineered on CO2 budget ?
[0:57:40] You introduced the concept of “opportunity cost emission”, could you explain it ?
[1:00:52] I get the impression that NIMBY and stranded assets are major obstacles to onshore wind deployment. What's your take on this? Can you tell us more about the opposition you've encountered from coal companies?
[1:05:23] What about the countries of the global south ? Should they follow the same path ?
[1:08:25] We should find harmony with our environment and question our energy needs. You never mention sufficiency in your plan, why ? What do you think about it ? Is it necessary ?
[1:10:36] Chapter 3 : Personal question
[1:10:36] If you could write a message on all university blackboards. What would this message be ?
Remerciements :
Emilie Malcourant
Monxage
LLL
UCLouvain
Louis Gayina
Swen Ore
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