Planetary Health, Science Thomas Culman Planetary Health, Science Thomas Culman

Li-Ion's Share

Rechargeable batteries are ubiquitous and power our lives in myriad ways, but to “electrify everything” we will need dramatically more of them, and that in turn means we will need cheaper and more environmentally friendly ways of manufacturing them.

Read More
Policy, Science, Planetary Health Thomas Culman Policy, Science, Planetary Health Thomas Culman

Now boarding: Net-zero aviation

Whether you enjoy air travel or not, it’s increasingly common and persistently bad for the environment. Almost three million passengers fly in and out of US airports each day and global demand for air travel is expected to double by 2050. In addition to emitting pollutants that lower air quality, aviation is recognized as a hard-to-decarbonize sector and accounts for ~3% of global CO2 emissions. Airlines have recently announced commitments to switch to "green" fuels, but as of today 95% of jet fuel is produced from fossil fuels. Why is that? 

Read More
Policy, Planetary Health Thomas Culman Policy, Planetary Health Thomas Culman

Talking Trash 2: Getting Scrappy

Let’s dig into some of the most recycled materials in the world – metals – and how we might make metals recycling even better. We are obsessed with metals because they are critical materials to human civilization and well-being, which is why improved scrap metal recovery is good for the economy, good for the environment, and good for people – exactly the kind of win-win-wins we live for at Planetary Health.

Read More
Policy, Planetary Health Thomas Culman Policy, Planetary Health Thomas Culman

Talking Trash 1: Why Sortation Matters

Let’s talk about something everyone produces but nobody really likes – trash. People produce billions of tons of waste annually. While there are many ways to reduce the amount of waste we produce, it is not possible to stop it entirely. Waste is, quite literally, inevitable. The disorder (entropy) in the universe increases with time, which just means that things will always break and there will always be some amount of waste. Once our things become our trash, we have two options: we can dispose of them or we can try to reclaim them as a resource. From a planetary health perspective, there are a lot of reasons to want to reclaim wastes as resources. Unfortunately, it is not easy to do so economically.

Read More
Finance, Policy, Biotech, Planetary Health Peter Kolchinsky Finance, Policy, Biotech, Planetary Health Peter Kolchinsky

Act now to prevent SVB’s failure from becoming a national crisis

The federal government must address the failure of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) with speed and clarity before it metastasizes into a national crisis, so the ecosystem of institutions in which SVB has operated, including other banks and investors, can help bridge companies so that they can continue to operate while they wait for their deposits.

Read More