Climate Confident

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Concrete alone accounts for around 7-8% of global emissions. So what happens when the real climate problem in buildings is no longer just energy, but the materials themselves?
In this episode of Climate Confident, I’m joined by Alexander Sexsmith, architect and founder of Sexsmith Architects, to unpack what regenerative architecture means when stripped of the fluff. We look at the climate challenge hiding in plain sight across the built environment: embodied carbon, toxic materials, weak resilience, and the fact that standard construction often performs badly when fire, water, and heat hit. If we’re serious about decarbonisation, net zero, and the energy transition, this matters now.
You’ll hear why cleaner grids are changing the climate maths for buildings, and why materials like concrete, petrochemical foams, and conventional drywall deserve a lot more scrutiny. We dig into how fast-grown bio-based materials such as hemp, straw, and cork could cut emissions reduction timelines, improve indoor air quality, and strengthen resilience. And you might be shocked to learn that some of the materials people still dismiss as fringe are already proving themselves on fire performance and commercial-scale construction.
We also get into the harder bit: scale. Cost, code, skills, supply, consumer awareness, and policy all matter. Because climate tech alone won’t fix construction unless markets, standards, and incentives move with it.
🎙️ Listen now to hear how Alexander Sexsmith and Sexsmith Architects are rethinking climate tech, decarbonisation, policy, and resilient design in the race to cut emissions from the built environment.
Sign up to Climate Confident+ for deep dive analysis of the major climate and energy stories of the day.
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Podcast subscribers
I'd like to sincerely thank this podcast's amazing subscribers:
Anita Krajnc
Cecilia Skarupa
Ben Gross
Jerry Sweeney
Andreas Werner
Stephen Carroll
Roger Arnold
And remember you too can Subscribe to the Podcast  - it is really easy and hugely important as it will enable me to continue to create more excellent Climate Confident episodes like this one, as well as give you access to the entire back catalog of Climate Confident episodes.

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If you have any comments/suggestions or questions for the podcast - get in touch via direct message on LinkedIn. 
If you liked this show, please don't forget to rate and/or review it. It makes a big difference to help new people discover the show.

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What if one of the most effective climate tech moves in hospitality isn’t flashy at all, but simply wasting less food with far better data?
In this episode, I’m joined by Olaf van der Veen, co-founder of Orbisk, to unpack a climate tech story that sits right at the intersection of decarbonisation, operational control, and the energy transition. We talk about food waste, but this is bigger than leftovers. It’s about hidden system failure, margin pressure, emissions reduction, and why cutting waste may be one of the most practical net zero levers available to commercial kitchens right now.
You’ll hear why food waste in restaurants, hotels, cruise ships, and corporate dining is often less about bad habits and more about broken forecasting, poor process design, and weak visibility. We dig into how Orbisk uses AI, computer vision, and IoT to show kitchens exactly what is being wasted, when, and why, and how that turns a vague sustainability ambition into something measurable and fixable. You might be shocked to learn how often the real losses happen before food ever reaches a plate.
We also get into the harder-edged business case: why food waste is pure bottom-line loss, why economics still drive most action faster than policy, and how the smartest operators are linking profitability and sustainability instead of pretending they sit on opposite sides of the ledger. No fluff. No green gloss. Just real-world climate solutions that cut costs, improve control, and reduce emissions.
🎙️ Listen now to hear how Olaf van der Veen and Orbisk are turning food waste into a serious climate tech and decarbonisation opportunity.
Sign up to Climate Confident+ for deep dive analysis of the major climate and energy stories of the day.
Support the show
Podcast subscribers
I'd like to sincerely thank this podcast's amazing subscribers:
Anita Krajnc
Cecilia Skarupa
Ben Gross
Jerry Sweeney
Andreas Werner
Stephen Carroll
Roger Arnold
And remember you too can Subscribe to the Podcast  - it is really easy and hugely important as it will enable me to continue to create more excellent Climate Confident episodes like this one, as well as give you access to the entire back catalog of Climate Confident episodes.

Contact
If you have any comments/suggestions or questions for the podcast - get in touch via direct message on LinkedIn. 
If you liked this show, please don't forget to rate and/or review it. It makes a big difference to help new people discover the show.

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Heat is becoming a business risk in plain sight. And if cooling demand is set to soar, the energy transition has a problem most people still aren’t talking about.

In this episode, I’m joined by Rob Atkin, co-founder and CEO of Pirta, a climate tech company developing passive cooling coatings and additives. We dig into a part of decarbonisation and the energy transition that gets far too little attention: how we keep buildings, warehouses, data centres, and infrastructure cool in a warming world without driving up electricity demand, emissions, and cost. 

You’ll hear why Rob says “sustainability doesn’t sell itself”, and why that blunt truth matters for every founder, policymaker, and business leader chasing net zero. We dig into how Pirta is trying to turn passive cooling from clever materials science into something customers will actually buy, deploy, and scale. And you might be surprised to learn that air conditioning already accounts for about 15% of global electricity demand, with that figure set to triple by 2050. 

We also get into the hidden role of titanium dioxide, why reducing it matters for emissions reduction, and where passive cooling could have the biggest impact first, from affordable housing to warehouses to AI-era data centres. 

One of the sharpest insights in this conversation is that some climate solutions win not because they sound noble, but because, as Rob puts it, “a paint’s not gonna break down.” Grimly practical. Exactly the point. 

🎙️ Listen now to hear how Rob Atkin and Pirta are pushing climate tech towards real-world adoption.
Sign up to Climate Confident+ for deep dive analysis of the major climate and energy stories of the day.
Support the show
Podcast subscribers
I'd like to sincerely thank this podcast's amazing subscribers:
Anita Krajnc
Cecilia Skarupa
Ben Gross
Jerry Sweeney
Andreas Werner
Stephen Carroll
Roger Arnold
And remember you too can Subscribe to the Podcast  - it is really easy and hugely important as it will enable me to continue to create more excellent Climate Confident episodes like this one, as well as give you access to the entire back catalog of Climate Confident episodes.

Contact
If you have any comments/suggestions or questions for the podcast - get in touch via direct message on LinkedIn. 
If you liked this show, please don't forget to rate and/or review it. It makes a big difference to help new people discover the show.

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What if fossil fuels aren’t just polluting, but a standing threat to economic stability?
This episode makes the case that the energy transition is now as much about security and cost as it is about climate.
In this solo Climate Confident+ episode, I dig into a brutal truth too many policymakers and business leaders still avoid: fossil fuels don’t merely drive emissions, they drive volatility, fragility, and geopolitical risk. At a moment when war, price shocks, and supply disruption are once again rattling global markets, I unpack why this matters for climate tech, decarbonisation, and the wider energy transition.
You’ll hear why fossil dependence acts like “instability in a bottle”, and why renewables, storage, EVs, heat pumps, and grid upgrades are increasingly the smarter response, not just environmentally, but economically. We dig into how fuel shocks ripple through inflation, trade, competitiveness, and public finances. And you might be shocked to learn just how much fossil import dependence is still costing countries, businesses, and households, even before you count the pollution, health damage, and wider social harm.
This is also a clear-eyed episode. I’m not pretending renewables solve everything by magic. We need grids, storage, flexibility, better policy, and faster deployment. But that’s precisely the point: those are infrastructure challenges we can solve. Perpetual exposure to volatile fossil fuels is not a strategy. It’s a liability.
🎙️ Listen now to hear why climate tech, policy, and electrification are becoming central to real-world decarbonisation, energy security, net zero, and long-term emissions reduction.
Support the show
Podcast subscribers
I'd like to sincerely thank this podcast's amazing subscribers:
Anita Krajnc
Cecilia Skarupa
Ben Gross
Jerry Sweeney
Andreas Werner
Stephen Carroll
Roger Arnold
And remember you too can Subscribe to the Podcast  - it is really easy and hugely important as it will enable me to continue to create more excellent Climate Confident episodes like this one, as well as give you access to the entire back catalog of Climate Confident episodes.

Contact
If you have any comments/suggestions or questions for the podcast - get in touch via direct message on LinkedIn. 
If you liked this show, please don't forget to rate and/or review it. It makes a big difference to help new people discover the show.

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What if voluntary carbon markets are either a vital climate tool... or a polished excuse to delay real decarbonisation?
In this episode of Climate Confident, I’m joined by Dr Jennifer Jenkins, Chief Science Officer at Rubicon Carbon, to unpack one of the most contested questions in climate tech and net zero strategy: what role, if any, should voluntary carbon markets play in real-world emissions reduction? At a time when companies are under pressure to decarbonise, prove integrity, and navigate fast-moving policy shifts, this debate matters more than ever.
We dig into why some firms see carbon credits as a practical way to close the gap between ambition and operational reality, and why others see them as a dangerous distraction. You’ll hear why quality, additionality, MRV, and long-term offtake agreements are becoming central to the future of the market, and why high-integrity supply may be far tighter than many buyers realise.
Jennifer also explains how buyers like Microsoft are shaping demand, how voluntary and compliance markets may be starting to converge, and why policy tools like CBAM could reshape the market faster than most people expect. You might be shocked to learn that one of the clearest ways to think about this space is as outsourced mitigation, a framing that makes the economics easier to grasp, but also exposes the credibility problem at the heart of the whole system.
🎙️ Listen now to hear how Jennifer Jenkins and Rubicon Carbon see the future of decarbonisation, climate tech, policy, and net zero.
Sign up to Climate Confident+ for deep dive analysis of the major climate and energy stories of the day.
Support the show
Podcast subscribers
I'd like to sincerely thank this podcast's amazing subscribers:
Anita Krajnc
Cecilia Skarupa
Ben Gross
Jerry Sweeney
Andreas Werner
Stephen Carroll
Roger Arnold
And remember you too can Subscribe to the Podcast  - it is really easy and hugely important as it will enable me to continue to create more excellent Climate Confident episodes like this one, as well as give you access to the entire back catalog of Climate Confident episodes.

Contact
If you have any comments/suggestions or questions for the podcast - get in touch via direct message on LinkedIn. 
If you liked this show, please don't forget to rate and/or review it. It makes a big difference to help new people discover the show.