DeepSummary
The episode features a conversation with Brandon Hurlbut, co-founder of Boundary Stone Partners, a climate change focused government affairs firm, and co-founder of Overture, an early stage climate tech venture capital firm. Brandon's background includes serving in the Obama administration as US Department of Energy Chief of Staff and the president's liaison to energy and environment cabinet agencies.
The discussion covers the intersection of policy and innovation, and Brandon's work at Boundary Stone, which helps companies navigate policy issues related to climate change and partner with the US government. A significant portion focuses on the stakes of the 2024 US election from a climate perspective, analyzing potential implications for climate policy and legislation under different scenarios of presidential and congressional control.
Key topics include the resilience of the Inflation Reduction Act's provisions, the bipartisan appeal of areas like hydrogen and geothermal energy, and permitting reform. Brandon also shares advice for getting involved in climate advocacy and elections through organizations like Climate Cabinet and Climate Power.
Key Episodes Takeaways
- The 2024 US elections have immense stakes for climate policy and innovation, with the potential for rollbacks or acceleration depending on the balance of power.
- Effective climate action requires collaborative efforts spanning government, private sector, policy, finance, and grassroots activism.
- Organizations like Boundary Stone help companies navigate complex policy landscapes and partner with the government on climate initiatives.
- Areas like hydrogen, geothermal, and permitting reform enjoy relatively bipartisan support in the energy policy space.
- The clean energy industry must build greater political advocacy capacity to protect and advance its interests.
- Major legislation like the Inflation Reduction Act contains a mix of more durable and more vulnerable provisions depending on future political winds.
- Nuanced, multi-stakeholder engagement is crucial for successful policy design and advocacy on industrial decarbonization and other climate challenges.
- Groups like Climate Cabinet, Climate Power, and Clean Energy for America provide avenues for individual involvement in climate elections and advocacy.
Top Episodes Quotes
- “I really believe, Cody, that in order to address climate change, we need all of those things to work together. Whenever we've had the biggest crises in humanity, we've solved it by government, the private sector, the media, all of those are tools to solve this issue.“ by Brandon Hurlbut
- “If you've met many of these members of Congress, that shouldn't be a surprise to you. So what we developed was a public policy advocacy campaign where we got stakeholders involved who care about industrial emissions and there's these different entities.“ by Brandon Hurlbut
- “Depends on what happens in the elections, right? Like if it's a divided government, you're going to have to compromise and the Republicans will advocate for fossil fuel interests.“ by Brandon Hurlbut
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Episode Information
My Climate Journey
Jason Jacobs, Cody Simms, Yin Lu
3/18/24
Brandon Hurlbut, our guest on this episode, wears multiple hats. He's co-founder at Boundary Stone Partners, a climate change focused government affairs firm created in 2013 that operates at the intersection of technology, finance, and policy.
He's also co-founder of Overture, an early stage climate tech venture capital firm that recently announced a $60 million debut fund, and he is an operating partner at NGP, a private equity fund focused on energy with billions of dollars under management. Among other activities, Brandon also serves on the board of directors of the Sunrise Movement, The Solutions Project, co-founded by Mark Ruffalo, and Clean Energy for America.
Before this, Brandon served in the Obama administration as US Department of Energy Chief of Staff, and in the White House as the president's liaison to the energy and environment cabinet agencies. At the DOE, Brandon oversaw day-to-day operations of a federal agency with a $29 billion budget and a 115,000 person workforce. He also served on the investment committee for its $38 billion Clean Energy Fund.
Cody and Brandon discuss the intersection of policy and innovation, including what his work at Boundary Stone entails and the types of problems they help companies navigate. They also delve into the 2024 US election, including what's at stake from a climate change perspective in the presidential, House, and Senate elections.
In this episode, we cover:
- [03:10]: Brandon's unified approach to merging technology, finance, and policy to combat climate change
- [05:22]: Involvement with the Sunrise Movement and The Solutions Project
- [09:52]: Transition from the Obama campaign to significant roles in energy and environment
- [14:08]: The genesis and evolution of Boundary Stone
- [21:14]: The varied advocacy work Boundary Stone undertakes to connect startups with government opportunities
- [30:31]: The high stakes of the 2024 US election for climate policy and innovation
- [34:42]: Potential climate policy directions and challenges in a post-2024 election landscape
- [40:27]: Ramifications of a potential 2024 Trump win on climate initiatives
- [43:53]: The role of Senate and House elections in shaping climate policy and legislation
- [46:13]: The bipartisan appeal of hydrogen, geothermal, and permitting reform in energy policy
- [50:38]: Brandon’s advice for getting involved ahead of the 2024 elections and beyond, including Climate Cabinet and Climate Power
Episode recorded on Mar 1, 2024 (Published on Mar 18, 2024)
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