In this episode, I’m delighted to be joined by Renaissance man Grant Faber. Grant is a Research Assistant at the Global CO2 Initiative and is currently in the Master's program for Sustainable and Complex Systems at the University of Michigan. His focus when it comes to systems is on carbon capture and utilization, and he shares how climate change has a cascading effect on all systems.

A Detroit native, Grant shares how a key travel experience — visiting a coal mining site in West Virginia — motivated him to focus on clean energy. He particularly piqued my interest when he spoke about a tool he had developed for measuring emissions associated with online conferences. In this conversation we chat about Grant’s many interests, find a shared love of the Santa Fe Institute, and explore how much we can learn today from ancient civilizations. We explore how very large numbers — such as are so prevalent in climate action discussions — often have a numbing effect and we need other methods to motivate individual behaviors. Lastly, he gives me hope for the future of low emissions travel. I just love the way his brain works, and it was a treat to have Grant on the podcast.

Quotes:

“The unfortunate reality is that there will always be some amount of emissions associated with travel. I think it’s sort of unlikely that we’ll be able to decarbonize everything so that’s part of the importance of funding carbon removal.”

Mentioned:
Tomorrow’s Air
AirMiners
Adventure Travel Trade Association
Santa Fe Institute

Songlist
Lovely Bloodflow by the Baths
Trials of the Past by SBTRKT
Bored in the USA by Father John Misty
Why We Build the Wall by Anais Mitchell

Ep. 15: Shannon Stowell – Traveling Escapades, Mishaps and Humility