Shift Key with Robinson Meyer and Jesse Jenkins

Every week, Heatmap News Executive Editor Robinson Meyer and Princeton University Professor and energy systems expert Jesse Jenkins make sense of the biggest shift of our time -- navigating the energy transition away from fossil fuels. Drawing on their years of experience reporting on and researching climate change and decarbonization, Meyer and Jenkins unpack the most important issues of the week and how the impacts of climate change and efforts to address it are transforming our economy, politics, and society at large. Music by Adam Kromelow.


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Recent Episodes
  • How BYD Got So Big
    Apr 23, 2025 – 1:00:02
  • What Happens to Global Decarbonization in a Trade War?
    Apr 16, 2025 – 48:30
  • How China’s Industrial Policy Really Works
    Apr 9, 2025 – 1:05:33
  • The Least-Noticed Climate Scandal of the Trump Administration
    Apr 2, 2025 – 49:19
  • What’s Really Holding Back New Data Centers
    Mar 26, 2025 – 1:05:15
  • How to Crash America’s Manufacturing Renaissance
    Mar 19, 2025 – 48:32
  • How Trump Has All But Halted Offshore Wind
    Mar 12, 2025 – 45:54
  • Why Solar Might Be Better Off Than You Think
    Mar 5, 2025 – 47:46
  • The Early Lessons of Trump’s ‘Energy Dominance’
    Feb 26, 2025 – 42:55
  • How to Talk to Your Friendly Neighborhood Public Utility Regulator
    Feb 19, 2025 – 1:08:55
  • What Senator Brian Schatz Wants Climate Advocates to Know
    Feb 12, 2025 – 1:02:37
  • The U.S. Auto Industry Wasn’t Built for Tariffs
    Feb 5, 2025 – 1:02:21
  • The Trump Policy That Would Be Really Bad for Oil Companies
    Jan 29, 2025 – 49:45
  • How Wildfires Destroyed California’s Insurance Market
    Jan 22, 2025 – 1:11:52
  • A Beginner’s Guide to the Hydrogen Economy
    Jan 15, 2025 – 1:11:37
  • Have China’s Emissions Already Peaked?
    Jan 8, 2025 – 1:03:07
  • Answering Your Questions on AI and Energy, the Economics of Solar, the GND’s Legacy, and More
    Jan 1, 2025 – 58:04
  • So, What Does AI Really Mean for Decarbonization?
    Dec 24, 2024 – 49:19
  • Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm on What Comes After Biden’s Climate Agenda
    Dec 18, 2024 – 1:02:39
  • Shift Key Classic: How China Created an EV Juggernaut
    Dec 11, 2024 – 51:10
  • How Democrats Are Trying to Trump-proof Their Big Climate Law
    Dec 4, 2024 – 1:03:40
  • How Trump Could Dent EVs in America
    Nov 27, 2024 – 1:05:51
  • The World Will Miss 1.5C. What Comes Next?
    Nov 20, 2024 – 59:10
  • Trump, China, and Climate Change: What Happens Next?
    Nov 13, 2024 – 1:04:51
  • The Inflation Reduction Act Is About to Be Tested
    Nov 6, 2024 – 45:53
  • Climate-o-Rama: EVs, Oil, Trump, and More
    Oct 30, 2024 – 59:24
  • Are Democrats the Party of Nuclear Now?
    Oct 23, 2024 – 1:02:06
  • Talking Permitting Reform, Trade, and More With Biden’s Top Climate Advisor
    Oct 16, 2024 – 1:01:06
  • Want to Decarbonize Your Life? Here’s How.
    Oct 9, 2024 – 1:05:58
  • How Climate Change Shaped Hurricane Helene
    Oct 3, 2024 – 48:25
  • The Local Elections That Matter for Decarbonization
    Oct 2, 2024 – 51:10
  • The Hardest Working $27 Billion in the IRA
    Sep 25, 2024 – 1:11:34
  • Why Geothermal Is So Hot Right Now
    Sep 18, 2024 – 1:08:08
  • A Beginner’s Guide to the Interconnection Queue
    Sep 11, 2024 – 1:09:08
  • What 2024 Will Mean for Clean Energy — in Megatons
    Sep 4, 2024 – 53:24
  • How 2025 Could Reshape Climate Policy — No Matter Who Wins the Election
    Aug 28, 2024 – 1:03:58
  • This Isn’t the Same Kind of Climate Election
    Aug 21, 2024 – 58:15
  • Why Treasury’s No. 2 Official Wants Permitting Reform
    Aug 14, 2024 – 53:00
  • Humanity’s Most Abundant Material Is a Huge Climate Problem
    Jul 24, 2024 – 44:08
  • How to Decarbonize the World’s Biggest Ships
    Jul 17, 2024 – 33:16
  • What the Supreme Court’s Rulings Mean for Climate Change
    Jul 10, 2024 – 1:03:43
  • How Europe and America Are Weatherproofing Climate Policy
    Jul 3, 2024 – 40:51
  • America’s Nuclear Policy Is Getting … Pretty Good!
    Jun 26, 2024 – 1:02:06
  • How China’s EV Industry Got So Big
    Jun 19, 2024 – 55:59
  • How to Fix Electricity Bills in America
    Jun 12, 2024 – 51:23
  • How California Broke Its Electricity Bills
    Jun 5, 2024 – 1:18:17
  • How to Unlock Super Cheap Rooftop Solar
    May 22, 2024 – 50:25
  • It Was a Big Week for the Power Grid
    May 15, 2024 – 50:29
  • Elon Musk Is Putting the EV Transition in Peril
    May 8, 2024 – 50:58
  • The EPA’s Carbon Crackdown Is Finally Here
    Apr 26, 2024 – 51:24
Recent Reviews
  • PhillyMattR
    A serious, detailed, and engaging podcast
    If you are interested/concerned about environmental challenges and how they fit into American/global society, this is the podcast for you. The hosts go into detail on techno/economic factors for the climate transition and how it relates to us as consumers. The episodes are engaging and serious, a rarity in today’s « attention at any cost, even the truth » media environment. Thanks guys for a great podcast.
  • Benihana H.
    Fantastic Pod!!!
    Love how personable the hosts feel. They do a great job making complex problems and solutions easy to understand. The optimistic approach to understanding the solutions available to us now and in the near future are a nice counterbalance to the overused defeatism found around the media landscape.
  • Jane Ashby
    Want to learn more about going Green?
    This is an excellent podcast for the Green-interested as well as experts. The unpacking of climate legislation impacts is eye-opening and hopeful. Those interested in making life better for future generations of people and the rest of the planet will find this podcast to be a solid guide to the green revolution in our midst. Being tech-positive is a plus, but the hosts and guests are plain-spoken and easy to understand. So much more than a “business” podcast!
  • iCentaur.com
    Severin Borenstein, really?
    There has been no one more responsible for suppressing Energy Democracy than the utility funded Hass Institute’s Severin Borenstein. I find it hypocritical that just as roof top solar was being embraced by the poor and middle class he suddenly uses the cost shift arguments to suppress the market for working families. If people want cheap & clean energy-modernize the grid by maximizing distributed energy solutions. Mr. Borenstein’s proposed policies are focused solely on utility profits, he should stop kidding himself and the public.
  • John pod listener
    Less feelings more facts
    Have been looking for a good podcast on climate and green technologies. Feel like so much online discussion is very emotional and ill informed. Not really that helpful. We need more of the type of discussion this podcast has.
  • Dreads Fan
    Well grounded
    Really enjoying this, particularly Jesse’s wealth of knowledge and ability to explain what are often hard to grasp concepts. Wish list guest: Doomberg simply to hear a fact based discussion from two different perspectives.
  • glebsfriend
    Rivian episode made me unsubscribe
    Two dudes who don’t actually know that much about cars, praising a hypothetical product from Rivian for an hour, while dealing a glancing blow to all the important rhetoric about systemic issues of American car dependency. This podcast was actively detrimental to addressing climate change.
  • Ihrtjmkeyenes
    Informative, Balanced, Nuanced Economic and Climate Policy Synthesis
    Robinson Meyer and Jesse Jenkins are two important figures in climate policy news and academic analysis; this podcast is an amazing opportunity to hear deep dives into current climate related news, and the economic solutions or policies to address them. I highly recommend listening, and also to subscribing to the related news site Heat Map, which has some of the best climate reporting I’ve read. Five Stars!
  • nancylaplaca
    Robinson repeats right-wing talking points
    And he’s passive aggressive about it. It’s the old “third way” theme, which is really about delay. At this point, Meyer adds to the predatory delay that far too many utilities push, while far too many regulators go-along-to-get-along, or look the other way. We are going too slow, and the reason isn’t technology cost, and it isn’t because of a cost shift for the relatively piddly amount of rooftops solar we have in this country. Want to talk cost shift? How about the damages from coal, which are $.20-$.30 for every kilowatt hour? The U.S. ~20% coal. Or the damages from fossil gas, which are $.08-$.14 a kilowatt hour. Heat map may be creating some heat, but they aren’t really shedding that much light. Go to Canary media for actual analysis.
  • Heeeeybrother
    Fantastic wonky climate chatter
    Really enjoying the show so far. I was already a big fan of Heatmap and of Jesse Jenkins’ work, so this podcast caught my eye immediately. Early episodes have not disappointed. Great mix of realism and optimism, and tons of in-the-weeds details about important topics.
  • aquidmin
    New energy gang!?
    Really happy to see these folks making a podcast about energy!
  • garencheckley
    Data backed fun climate talk!
    I listen to a lot of climate podcasts, and this Shift Key takes the top spot due to it’s data (vs opinion) driven conversations, the depth of discussion, and it’s fast, fun place. Great show — I’d even pay for it!
  • Mbncr
    Academic navel gazing
    Rooftop solar is bad for climate because evidently batteries and dsm don’t exist. Deeply silly episode that feels 3-5 years behind the market and broader industry conversations.
  • Millennial Blueberry
    Podcast with one of my favorite climate scientists
    Loving the show so far. Sometimes I wish Jesse Jenkins did more talking, especially when they had a guest on, and felt like he could hardly get a word in edgewise. But otherwise very interesting and well done.
  • MikeM37363729
    A must listen for climate and clean energy
    Jesse and Robinson’s combined expertise makes this show a must listen week in and week out for anyone interested in or working on the energy transition.
  • Costasamaras
    Very well done!
    The Shift Key podcast is absolutely phenomenal. They talk about important climate and energy policy topics in ways that are clear and fun. It is very well done, I’m going to binge all the episodes.
  • Ben in Brooklyn
    Very insightful conversation on a critical issue.
    These guys really know their stuff!
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