Energy Transition Is ‘More Profound Than the Internet,’ Says John Podesta
The White House’s clean energy advisor said climate change will usher in an economic transformation “on a size and scale never heard of in human history.”
John Podesta, a veteran Democratic strategist, joined the Biden administration in September to spearhead its implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act.
Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/When humanity looks back on this period in history, it will be seen as an inflection point in the climate crisis, White House advisor John Podesta said at the Bloomberg Green Summit on Wednesday. A Democratic strategist who joined the Biden administration last year as senior advisor on clean energy innovation & implementation, Podesta said climate change is ushering in “a transformation of the global economy on a size and scale never heard of in human history.”
“I lived through seeing the power of what the internet did, and what communications and information technologies are impacting,” Podesta said during an on-stage interview. “I think this is even more profound than that.”
Podesta, who has also served as a chief of staff to former President Bill Clinton and a climate advisor to former President Barack Obama, is now tasked with overseeing the implementation of the Inflation Reduction Act, which passed in the US last year. The IRA’s $374 billion in credits and incentives for carbon-free development makes it the country’s largest climate investment ever. One analysis found that, if fully implemented, the IRA will cut US greenhouse gas emissions 37% to 41% from 2005 levels. The Biden administration has pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50% from 2005 levels by 2030.