154. African Clean Energy Access: Why Gas Cannot Be The Future Africa Chooses with Rachel Kyte

By Global Optimism

Outrage + Optimism

20/05/22·59m 20s

In this episode, we talk about the impacts of living through a global energy crisis while living through a climate crisis.

Inflation is running at 10% in most major economies, the highest in decades. This is driven primarily by the cost of food and energy. And while most of us are aware of higher prices at the pump and on energy bills, today we focus on the hardest place it is hitting: Africa.

Since 2019, 4% of Africans have lost access to affordable energy, undoing a decade of gains. And with a desire in the Global North to get off of Russian Gas, there is higher demand for gas, and therefore pushing more and more people out of the ability to afford it. This week in response, African Ministers made the case for expanding gas production in Africa, amidst a climate crisis.

So that’s the setup for this week’s discussion - we bring in Rachel Kyte, Dean of the Fletcher School at Tufts University to argue the case on how to move forward out of this complicated situation.

And be sure to stick around ‘til the end for a brand new tune from Carmody titled, “Mother.”

Enjoy the show!

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Christiana + Tom’s book ‘The Future We Choose’ is available now!

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Mentioned links from the episode:

READ: Vanessa Nakate’s Op-Ed in Aljazeera

READ: SG António Guterres’ 5 Point Plan on Renewable Energy

VOTE: Time is running out to vote! Go to EnvironmentalMusicPrize.com to vote for your favorite 3 songs. Voting ends May 22nd!

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Thanks to our guest this week, Rachel Kyte!