Dr. Shuchi Talati on enabling climate policy and governance to keep pace with new technologies and interventions

Episode 21 of the Carbon Curve is with Dr. Shuchi Talati, founder of the recently launched nonprofit, The Alliance for Just Deliberation for Solar Geoengineering.

In this episode, Na’im and Dr. Shuchi Talati talk about shifting the conversation on two major climate interventions in the course of her career. First, we discuss her experience working with the Department of Energy to help facilitate a major shift in mandate for the Office of Fossil Energy and making it the Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management. Second, we discuss an exciting new nonprofit that proposes a major shift in how we advance deliberations on a contentious topic that is often wrongly conflated with carbon removal - solar geo engineering.

In this episode, Na’im and Dr. Talati discuss:

• Dr. Talati’s experience as Chief of Staff of DOE’s Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management;

• DOE’s CDR initiatives including the Carbon Negative Shot, Direct Air Capture Hubs, and Mission Innovation;

• The growing focus on environmental justice and community engagement in CDR;

• The important distinction between CDR and solar geoengineering;

• The need for inclusive governance structures and capacity building in the context of solar geoengineering; and

• The launch of her new nonprofit, The Alliance for Just Deliberation for Solar Geoengineering.

Relevant Links:

• Our New Name is also a New Vision (DOE)

• DOE’s Carbon Negative Shot

• Mission Innovation - CDR

• How Direct Air Capture Succeeds: A framework for Effective DAC Hubs

• The Alliance for Just Deliberation for Solar Geoengineering

About Dr. Shuchi Talati

Dr. Talati is the founder of the recently launched nonprofit, The Alliance for Just Deliberation for Solar Geoengineering. She is also a Senior Visiting Scholar at Carbon180 where she is focusing on how to build just and sustainable carbon removal at scale. She most recently served as a Presidential Appointee in the Biden-Harris Administration as Chief of Staff of the Office of Fossil Energy & Carbon Management at the U.S. Department of Energy. She has also worked for multiple nonprofits as well as in the U.S. Senate. Dr. Talati earned a BS in environmental engineering from Northwestern University, an MA in climate and society from Columbia University, and PhD from Carnegie Mellon in engineering and public policy.

This podcast is created and published by Na’im Merchant. Episode production and content support provided by Lucia Simonelli.

Na’im Merchant is the co-founder and Executive Director of Carbon Removal Canada, a policy initiative focused on scaling carbon removal in Canada. He is also a policy fellow with Elemental Excelerator. He previously ran carbon removal consulting practice Carbon Curve, and publishes The Carbon Curve newsletter and podcast. Every two weeks, Na’im will release a short interview with individuals advancing the policies, technologies, and collective action needed to scale up carbon removal around the world.

If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe to this podcast on your favorite podcast app or subscribe via The Carbon Curve newsletter here. If you’d like to get in touch with Na’im, you can reach out via Twitter and LinkedIn.