ABOUT THE HOPKINS GREEN TEA:
The Hopkins Green Tea is a student-created podcast from the Master of Arts of Sustainable Energy Program at Johns Hopkins SAIS. The podcast unites the voices of four women working in and studying distinct clean technology fields. Their common goal is to talk through the many sustainable energy topics – often thrown around at a high-level in the news and politics – in a more digestible way. Climate change is affecting people across the world, as governments, the private sector, and civil society all work to mitigate and adapt. There are no dumb questions in trying to better understand how this green transition impacts you.
ABOUT THE HOSTS:
All four hosts are Master of Arts in Sustainable Energy candidates.
Abigail Hunter is the governmental affairs attachée for the Québec Government’s Office in Washington. She leads the Office’s engagement on clean energy, electric vehicles, batteries and critical minerals. Abigail is also charged with federal and national level outreach for the province. Abigail sits on the leadership of the Association of Women in International Trade. She is also a Non-Resident Fellow at the SAFE Center for Strategic Industrial Materials, where she focuses on the economic and security implications of decarbonizing aluminum.
Leonie Hikita possesses an international background and ten years of business experience in the finance and IT industries. Currently, she is doing internship at Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation (JOGMEC). Before joining SAIS, she was a fund manager of multinational corporate venture capital funds (totaling $90 million) in Silicon Valley.
Amythest Devlin is an associate project manager of energy strategy for JLL, a real estate company. She consults on net zero design and strategy, incorporating renewable energy, and EV electrification strategy for large portfolio clients. Her experience prior to commercial real estate is in the non-profit sector, including a year of service in AmeriCorps. She studies the intersection of energy policy on building codes and equity programs and serves on the Johns Hopkins Sustainability Leadership Council.
Sheida Hooshmandi is a British-Iranian multi-platform journalist and documentary filmmaker with over a decade of experience. Sheida has presented and produced reports and documentaries across the globe, in countries such as India, Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, England and the EU with a focus on the political economy of energy. Prior to joining SAIS, Sheida was a full-time senior reporter for the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and is currently on sabbatical leave to delve deeper into finding answers to her questions about the energy and environment.
EPISODES
Master of: Grid Resilience
About the “Master Of” Series: In this series, the hosts speak on the capstone work each presented as part of their MA in Sustainable Energy program at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.
In this third episode, Sheida details her thesis on “Enhancing Power Resilience in Southern California Amidst Wildfire Threat: A Comprehensive Analysis of Microgrid Integration Viability in San Bernardino County.” In her research, she simulated RE plus projects in two different communities with various socioeconomic specifications in order to find whether there is an economy of scale threshold where the DER makes financial and economic sense based on parameters such as the critical load factor, the size of the resident pool, and the amount of land available for a solar PV array project. The findings of her research will inform policy-makers in their efforts to mitigate the impacts of wildfire-related outages and enhance community resilience.
Master of: Aluminum
About the “Master Of” Series: In this series, the hosts speak on the capstone work each presented as part of their MA in Sustainable Energy program at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.
In this second episode, Abigail Hunter - Master of Aluminum, discusses aluminum and its role in the clean energy transition. Exploring the narrative of a renewable transition, Abigail challenges listeners to understand that the transition away from a fossil fuel economy is really a transition to a minerals economy. The renewable industry needs critical minerals, such as aluminum, as do many other industries and use cases including (but not limited to) cars, buildings, and airplanes. However, to create aluminum a large amount of energy must be consumed, thus entering a paradox where critical minerals must be balanced as a fuel source in the transition. Listen in as Abigail shares insights regarding policy and market considerations within this complex.
Sustainable Supply Chains and Climate Policy with Professor Jonas Nahm
Discover the latest episode of Hopkins Green Tea, where four hosts - Sheida Hooshmandi, Abigail Hunter, Leonie Hikita, and Amythest Develin - are joined by esteemed Professor Jonas Nahm from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. As a renowned expert in climate policy, environmental politics, and economic and industrial policy, Jonas Nahm sheds light on the complexities of supply chain considerations and uncovers how our interconnected economy adapts to domesticating manufacturing processes while climate change is pressing us for immediate action; and what are the strategies and hurdles that lie ahead in this ever-changing landscape.
Master of: Building Electrification
In this episode, our hosts return after taking May off to finish their capstone projects and graduate from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies with their asters of Arts in Sustainable Energy. Over the next few months, each host will share more information regarding her capstone with the Green Tea audience, in a mini series called “Master of.”
In this first episode, Amythest Devlin, who last year shared with our audience her passion for the intersection of climate change and the built environment, talks with Sheida and Leonie about her capstone on the topic. This episode explores how policy interactions in metropolitan cities play a large role in helping address systemic implications of racist and discriminatory housing policies. What role do these policy creators have in addressing these concerns, and more importantly; How can we address systemic inequalities as we move towards a Just Energy Transition?
The Global Climate Arena, Part 2 (April 2023)
This episode is part 2 of our March 23rd episode, "The view from the global climate arena". We continue our conversation with Jesse Young, SAIS alum and Senior Advisor to the Chair at the U.S. Export-Import Bank. We deepen our conversation around technology leapfrogging, how to incentivize reducing dependency on fossil fuels, and work collaboratively to address climate change by mobilizing climate finance. Additionally, we dig into equity considerations in this space globally and ask Jesse to speak on what the hidden wins on the climate were in 2022. If you missed the first part of our conversation with Jesse, give it a listen as well!
The View from the Global Climate Arena (March 2023)
In this episode, a fellow SAIS alum, Jesse Young, joins us to talk about international climate governance. With the most recent literature from the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) that was published this week, it's apparent that we are in an all hands on deck situation. Climate change is a capital intensive and complex problem to solve, and international collaboration is one of the only ways we can access the tools needed. Jesse lets the podcast hosts toss some hard questions his way including the role he played in the Paris Climate Agreement, the validity of the US role in international climate governance, and just where does all this money come from? This episode is a 2-part series, with the second half of our conversation with Jesse launching next month.
Inside the Messy World of Greenwashing (February 2023)
After two episodes of lauding climate policy advancement, this episode of the Hopkins Green Tea serves up a healthy dose of scepticism! Tune in as our hosts dive into the layers of greenwashing with our special guest, Dori Dana-Haeri, an entrepreneur and seed investor in green technologies.
More IRA - Making Power Moves (January 2023)
In this months episode of the Hopkins Green Tea, our hosts lead us through the second conversation regarding the historical climate legislation, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Joined by their first guest speaker, @Abigail Hopper, hosts Abigail Hunter and Sheida Hooshmandi take a deeper look into how the IRA will impact the solar industry specifically. Abigail Hopper provides critical insights on this element of the energy transition through her capacity as President and CEO of the @Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). The conversation explores how tax incentives, especially those available for projects in historically disadvantaged neighborhoods, will play a role in an entire economic transition related to renewable energy production in the US. Listen in as our hosts inspect this legislation on episode 3 of The Hopkins Green Tea, “More IRA - Making Power Moves”.
Dashing Through the IRA (December 2022)
In the second episode of The Hopkins Green Tea, our hosts begin navigating the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) of 2022. Leonie and Abigail lead listeners through a background of the historic and game changing legislation, while Sheida and Amythest add additional perspectives on the future implications of the IRA. The quadruplet recalls what was a turbulent 2022 that has pushed energy security, environmental justice and climate change to the front of legislative minds. Tune in to hear how this group takes on this complex subject in The Hopkins Green Tea episode 2, “Dashing Through the IRA”.
The Hopkins Green Tea (November 2022)
In the inaugural episode of The Hopkins Green Tea, our hosts talk through the podcast's goals, format, and origins. Amythest, Sheida, Abigail, and Leonie all share the unique experiences that brought them to Johns Hopkins SAIS to study sustainable energy. From pivoting a finance career to producing documentaries on pollution to narrowing in on building decarbonization, the hosts’ diverse backgrounds and interests mirror the vast scope of sustainable energy. Tune in to hear how these topics and more will be tackled in The Hopkins Green Tea.
PHOTO CREDIT: “Scaling Up Renewable Energy Access in Eastern Indonesia (Sumba Iconic Island Initiative)” by Asian Development Bank is marked with CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.