S2E10: Getting transpartisan with the hosts of Political Climate, Julia Pyper & Shane Skelton
It’s easy to disagree with an idea, but it’s hard to be disagreeable with a person, especially if it’s someone you happen to know and like. And yet, most of the conversations we have around climate change are politically charged shouting matches with strangers—typed in all caps online. So, what can we do to foster truly productive discussions around climate solutions, even among people with a very different point of view?
Julia Pyper is a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council and contributing editor at Greentech Media, and Shane Skelton is the cofounder and partner at S2C Pacific, an energy and environment consultancy firm. Together, they are two of the three cohosts of Political Climate, a bipartisan podcast on energy and environmental politics in America. Today, Julia and Shane join Ross to discuss how their show is working to normalize the conversation on climate change (on both sides of the aisle) and explore what’s behind the increasing polarization in DC and what role the media plays in perpetuating our political divisions.
Julia and Shane go on to explain how we can be open to views that differ from our own without participating in ‘balance is bias’ and address the arguments for and against carbon removal as a climate solution. Listen in for insight into the common ground that exists between Democrats and Republicans and learn what YOU can do to further productive discussions on climate change!
Key Takeaways
[2:09] What the Political Climate podcast is working to achieve
New kind of dialogue, disagree in civil manner Normalize conversation on right and left
[5:11] How Shane and Julia think about the idea of deplatforming
Silencing people who disagree is dangerous Don’t want to participate in ‘balance is bias’
[8:06] The concern that taking half measures is not enough
Risk doing nothing if block moderate steps ‘Yes, and’ = more effective way of communicating
[13:21] What’s behind the increasing polarization in politics
Removal of earmarks, ethics rules and transparency Lack of shared experiences prevents friendships
[17:46] The media’s role in our current political divisions
Giving content away for free led to devaluation Outrage is in vogue and clicks dominate
[24:54] How much common ground exists on climate change
More than we think, shift to see as problem to solve Broad bipartisan support on some policy measures (clean tech)
[30:15] The arguments against carbon removal as a solution
Permits fossil fuel use in perpetuity Preserves longevity, influence of oil and gas industry
[37:49] What we can do to further the climate discussion
In-person conversations, more in common than different Reach out to elected leaders (continued attention = action)
[45:49] Shane’s insight on how to foster productive discussion
Not there to win or conduct real-time fact checking Provide context of what person says through own view
Connect with Ross
Nori
Nori on Facebook
Nori on Twitter
Nori on Medium
Nori on YouTube
Nori on GitHub
Nori on Patreon
Nori Newsletter
Email podcast@nori.com
Nori White Paper
Subscribe on iTunes
Carbon Removal Newsroom
Resources
Political Climate
Political Climate on Twitter
Shane on Twitter
Julia on Twitter
David Roberts on Political Climate
Arnold Schwarzenegger on Political Climate
The Political Climate Path to Zero Series
The Political Climate Solutions Show
The Schwarzenegger Institute
The Schwarzenegger Institute on Reversing Climate Change
Green New Deal
American Energy Innovation Act
IPCC Report on Climate Change
Atlantic Council
US Representative Bob Latta
republicEn
GTM Solar Summit
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free