Climate One

The Goldman Environmental Prize is known as the Nobel for grassroots environmental champions, for good reason. Award-winners are earth defenders, often bucking entrenched systems and powerful interests in order to protect and restore the natural environments we all depend on. This week we feature conversations with two of the 2026 Goldman Prize winners: 


Iroro Tanshi, a tropical conservationist and bat ecologist who rediscovered a species that hadn't been seen in half a century. When climate-amplified wildfire threatened to destroy her new find, she built a community movement to virtually eliminate the wildfire risk. 


Sarah Finch, a tireless environmental advocate who spent years in English courts using planning law as a defense against the fossil fuel industry. She won a major UK Supreme Court ruling, a ruling that is already constraining oil, gas, and coal development across the country.  

What can we learn about passion, persistence, and collaboration from these two advocates?

Guests: 

Iroro Tanshi, Tropical Conservationist

Sarah Finch, Environmental Campaigner

For show notes, related links, and episode transcript, visit https://climateone.org/podcasts

Highlights:

00:00 Intro

03:01 Iroro Tanshi on Warri, Nigeria and the oil industry

05:37 Iroro Tanshi on becoming interested in bats and the forest

09:24 Iroro Tanshi on finding a bat species once thought extinct

14:03 Iroro Tanshi on when a wildfire tore through the research site

19:20 Iroro Tanshi on the wildfire risks of forests in equatorial Africa 

20:50 Iroro Tanshi on working with the community to address the wildfires

23:01 Iroro Tanshi how to scale what she’s learned world-wide 

24:40 Iroro Tanshi on what bats can teach people about being human

27:17 Sarah Finch on realizing the far reaching implication of her work

30:49 Sarah Finch on why the legal argument finally worked 

34:42 Sarah Finch on getting the confidence to go after big oil 

44:43 Sarah Finch on how a group of people can make a real difference 

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Protest is the ultimate in equal-opportunity political action. As Annie Leonard, former executive director of Greenpeace USA says, "Making change is like laying a stone path across the garden. Peaceful protest may be every 4th or 8th or 200th stone; it helps us get where we want to go but also we need a lot of other stones too.”  Leonard explores the history of protests in her new book “Protest: Respect It. Defend It. Use It.” 

And while protest is the loudest and most visible tool, it’s only one of many ways to take action. Through community building, through civic engagement, through elected office, through corporate boardrooms, through churches and nonprofit agencies, there are countless paths to exercising power and promoting positive change. In this episode we hear from three leaders working in three different arenas, all toward the same goal.

Guests:

Annie Leonard, Environmental Activist, Author of “Protest: Respect It, Defend It, Use It”

Danielle Lee, Founder, Climate Action Club 

James Coleman, City Councilor, South San Francisco

For show notes, transcript, and related links, visit climateone.org/podcasts

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

04:00 – Annie Leonard shares the story of the Section 504 sit-ins protest in San Francisco

06:30 – Different ways protest can be effective

08:30 – Leonard on why she puts her body on the line (gets arrested) during protests

16:00 – Leonard on the lawsuit Energy Transfer brought against Greenpeace USA over Standing Rock protests

22:00 – Protecting, defending, and using the right to protest 

26:00 – Danielle Lee on organizing younger people around climate and environment 

30:30 – Systemic versus personal action

37:00 – James Coleman on the decision to run for office as a tool for effective change

41:00 – Impact of local government 

46:30 – How change actually happens

50:00 – Climate One More Thing

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Sometimes mothers are biological; other times, they’re chosen. But often, they're the fiercest people you can have on your side.

In this special Mother’s Day episode, we’ll hear stories about the vital role mothers and caregivers play in confronting the climate crisis. From a midwife providing essential healthcare in one of the most climate-stressed regions on the planet to an organizer who leads a network of over a million caregivers demanding cleaner air and a healthier future — these women show what it means to protect people in a changing world.

Guests: 

Dominique Browning, Co-Founder and Director, Moms Clean Air Force

Neha Mankani, Founder, Mama Baby Fund; Climate Advisor, International Confederation of Midwives

Shohreh Karimipour, Former Regional Water Engineer, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation; Kousha Navidar’s Mom

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org/podcasts.

Highlights:

00:00 Intro

00:25 Shohreh Karimipour on instilling care for the environment

07:49 Dominique Browning on founding Moms Clean Air Force

12:36 Dominique Browning on framing climate around children’s health

15:10 Isla and Levi on what their mom has taught them

18:28 Dominique Browning on leading and dealing with federal rollbacks

23:47 Dominique Browning on how her approach is different

29:44 More mom stories

34:06 Neha Mankani on midwifery as a climate resilience strategy

35:54 Neha Mankani on connecting reproductive care to the climate crisis

38:39 Neha Mankani on the healthcare system in Pakistan

45:30 Neha Mankani on how climate impacts men and women differently

49:15 Neha Mankani on being able to serve in her role

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In 2021, legendary investor John Doerr outlined his plan to solve climate change in his bestseller “Speed & Scale.” The plan outlines 10 objectives, each with their own set of key results, to cut emissions to net zero. And in true John Doerr style, the results are to be measurable and trackable. 

​Now, five years later, Doerr and co-author Ryan Panchadsaram unveil their 2026 update, revealing where the world is winning, where it's falling behind, and what it will take to close the gap.

Guests:

John Doerr, Venture capitalist; Chair, Kleiner Perkins

Ryan Panchadsaram, Advisor to the Chairman, Kleiner Perkins

Aliya Haq, President, Clean Economy Project (CleanEcon)

Robinson Meyer, Founding Executive Editor, Heatmap News

​​Nancy E. Pfund,  Founder and Managing Partner, DBL Partners

For show notes, transcript, and related links, visit https://www.climateone.org/podcasts

Highlights:

00:00 – Intro

01:00 – John Doerr on how his plan differs from others

05:30 – Ryan Panchadsaram: updated plan focuses on what needs to be built, rather than cut

08:30 – Bright spot: deployment of solar and wind

10:00 – Big challenges: methane leaks

15:30 – Keeping accountable with shifting deadlines

19:00 – Where government succeeds and fails in addressing climate

21:30 – Where tech industry/VC succeeds and fails in addressing climate

29:00 – Reframing the climate narrative around the good news

33:20 – Aliya Haq: load growth is an incredible opportunity for us to advance clean

37:00 – Coalition uniting to fix the grid and make policy work for clean energy

39:00 – Robinson Meyer on geopolitical energy shocks and reconsideration of fuel sources

44:15 – Race for clean tech is a “frenemy” competition 

48:00 – Nancy Pfund: Clean energy remains a very “investable” area 

52:00 – Cost curves for EVs, solar are inexorable – we just need to build policy to support it

54:00 – Climate One More Thing

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This year, one of the most powerful politicians in the country decided not to seek re-election. For nearly 38 years, Nancy Pelosi has represented the people of San Francisco in the US House of Representatives. As one of the most powerful House Speakers in U.S. history, Pelosi played a central role in advancing landmark environmental and climate laws, and bringing energy and climate policy to the forefront of the national agenda.  

Her retirement opens up a space for a new person to take up her mantle as an advocate for climate and energy policies, as well as the other priorities of the people of California’s 11th District. Saikat Chakrabarti and Scott Wiener are both vying to represent the district in congress. How does each candidate plan to balance serious climate action with the everyday economic pressures facing Bay Area communities? Can they refocus Congress on climate solutions? And what, specifically, is their plan?

Guests: 

Saikat Chakrabarti, President, New Consensus

Scott Wiener, California State Senator 

For show notes and related links, visit ClimateOne.org/podcasts.

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Support Climate One by going ad-free! By subscribing to Climate One on Patreon, you’ll receive exclusive access to all future episodes free of ads, opportunities to connect with fellow Climate One listeners, and access to the Climate One Discord. Sign up today at patreon.com/ClimateOne. 

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