Featured Image

September 21, 2024

Nucleation sponsors “Uplifting Humanity” Symposium

Nuclear symposium.png

Nucleation Capital is pleased to sponsor Uplifting Humanity, Nuclear New York's UNGA Science Summit symposium during Climate Week NYC.  This event is a collaboration with the Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability and Generation Atomic to advance conversations around nuclear energy and sustainable development. This in-person event on Roosevelt Island will be simulcast globally as part of the UNGA Science Summit. This year’s nuclear symposium will bring together energy and technology investors, delegations of emerging economies, economic development organizations, and international climate/environment groups to discuss opportunities and challenges in scaling up this clean energy technology.

  • Nuclear Symposium 2024 will bring together energy and technology investors, delegations of emerging economies, economic development organizations, and international climate-environmental groups to advance conversations on the opportunities and challenges of scaling up this clean energy technology.

Doors open at 9:00 am with coffee, doughnuts and networking and the day gets kicked off with opening remarks from Grace Stanke, crowned Miss American for 2023, who devoted her year in the limelight to advocating for nuclear energy. Topics to follow include: The Nuclear Fuel Cycle, Energy Abundance, System Level Challenges for Decarbonization and more. The day will rap up (literally), with a RapUp by Dex McBean and Nathanology.

The list of confirmed speakers is long and impressive and includes:

  • Amir Adnani, Uranium Energy Corp.
  • Jason Albritton, The Nature Conservancy
  • Dr. Lindsay Anderson, Cornell University
  • Dr. Dinara Ermakova, Anthropocene Institute and Generation Atomic
  • Scott Lathrop, yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini (ytt) Tribe, California
  • Alexander Kaufman, Huffington Post
  • Julie Kozeracki, U.S. Department of Energy
  • Nana Menya Ayensu, The White House
  • Jacques Moserri, Curio Legacy Ventures
  • Patrick O'Brien, Holtec International
  • Charles Oppenheimer, Oppenheimer Project
  • Angelica Oung, Anthropocene Institute and Clean Energy Transition Alliance
  • Carl Perez, Exodys Energy
  • Ryan Pickering, DOE Consent-Based Siting Consortia Facilitator
  • Tricia Pridemore, Georgia Public Service Commission
  • Edward Rios, EXIM Bank
  • Dr. Leonard Rodberg, Professor Emeritus of Queens College NY
  • Erich Scherer, New York State Energy Research and Development Authority
  • Dr. Charlyne Smith, Electric Power Research Institute
  • Dr. Robert Sogbadji, Ghanaian Ministry of Energy
  • Dr. Nick Touran, What Is Nuclear and TerraPower LLC
  • Tea Törmänen, WePlanet

Click here to learn more about the Nuclear Symposium and register to attend.

Published by Valerie Gardner in Advanced Nuclear, Advanced Nuclear Customers, African electrification, Carbon emissions, Climate change, Climate policy, Energy transition, International Collaboration, International support for nuclear, NEWS, Pro-nuclear campaign, Solving climate
Featured Image

January 4, 2024

Dr. Hansen warning humanity to get its act together, deploy renewables and nuclear

Dr. James Hansen's year-end update contains an admonishment right in the title, "A Miracle Will Occur" Is Not Sensible Climate Policy."  Those who have followed his work and his typically well-tempered writing will recognize this as a very strong indictment of what we've not done to date to address climate change. This is, for this mild-mannered scientist, the equivalent of "Hey Guys, Get your S _  _ T together!"

Dr. Hansen proceeds to call "bunk" on the assertions from both the COP 28 Chairman and the UN Secretary General who imply that the goal of keeping temperature rise to below 1.5°C is still feasible. According to Dr. Hansen, the already banked warming will take us beyond 2.0°C "if policy is limited to emission reductions and plausible CO2 removal." In other words, he makes it clear that this is now merely wishful thinking and does not reflect a realistic understanding of the way that emissions released create future warming, which he calls "Global Warming in the Pipeline" and describes in the linked paper.

The only realistic approach is to take true climate analysis that is informed by knowledge of the warming "forcing" effects and to use that to drive decisions about policy options. If we can possibly use the next several years to define and commence more effective policies and courses of action, then there is a modicum of a chance that we can still save the future for our young people. If this isn't a bomb of an alarm, it would be hard to say what else would be, especially because the IPCC has made it very clear that major ecosystems, starting with coral reefs and then, therefore, all marine life, will be threatened with substantial (90%) collapse by 1.5°C  and with 100% by 2°C.

Unfortunately, climate science is complicated and most people don't have a good understanding of the "human-made forcings that are driving Earth's climate away from the relatively stable climate of the Holocene (approximately the past 10,000 years.)" Even if they could grasp the implications about climate science from the graphs that Dr. Hansen and his team provide, very few are even reading Hansen's work. These graphs are very scary but clearly they are not being used as the basis for policy discussions by either politicians, government agencies (like the EPA), or by leading environmental groups and that is likely the primary reason why many people are still arguing about renewables versus nuclear power, thinking they have a certain luxury of time, rather than saying "Renewables and nuclear, YES!"

For his part, Dr. Hansen doesn't make it as easy as he could for those with less expertise in climate science. He spends a lot of effort discussing two major climate forcings: greenhouse gases (GHGs) and aerosols (fine airborne particles), which in fact have opposing forcings. But then goes into detail on many other related forcings. This level of detail may provide a more scientifically accurate picture of what is going on but it makes for much sparser readership. Clearly, there are many different kinds of feedback loops, including how the aerosols impact cloud formation, albedo effects and also the way the ocean absorbs a considerable amount of the warming that is happening to our climate. It's important that he understands these effects but it takes considerable sifting work to get to the point that what it all adds up to is that there is much more warming that has occurred than what we are actually now experiencing, so in fact, the effect of warming will be accelerate and we're now seeing this.

Even for those of us who finding climate science fascinating, this 14-page paper is incredibly dense and gets relatively badly bogged down with details on things like cloud forcings, albedo changes, reviewing differences between expected temperatures and real world measurements, catching up with a 40-year old mystery having to do with the last glacial maximum and describing the impacts of an "experiment" that occurred when the International Maritime Organization limited sulfur content in ship fuel and the variability introduced by El Nino and La Nina events.  The bottom line of quite extensive discussion that few will wade through, is that global warming is now accelerating. This is very important but definitely buried. The key graphic of the whole paper depicts this acceleration.

On page 7, we finally get to the implications of global warming acceleration.  As shown in the above graph, were the warming happening at a steady rate, we'd be on the green dotted line. Instead, we are veering off into the yellow zone of accelerated warming, which means that we'll "exceed the 1.5°C mark within the next few months and reach a level far above 1.5C by May 2024."

Hansen, while recognizing that there could be some up and down based upon El Nino and La Nina effects, believes that the baked in energy imbalance already "in the pipeline" means that it does not serve anybody's interests to "wait a decade to declare that the 1.5°C limit has been breached." In summary, Hansen argues that, "unless purposeful actions are taken to reduce our present extraordinary planetary energy imbalance," the 2°C global warming limit will also be breached.

By its very nature of having a delayed, baked-in response, human-made climate change makes this an intergenerational issue. What we have done in the past is already having consequences but what we do today and going forward will mostly impact the next generation for better or worse.

To his credit, Hansen dives yet again into Climate Policy, unlike most other scientists. This has been long been a huge source of frustration for him and you can almost see him stomping on his own hat, in his anger and impatience with the political processes that have thwarted action. First he reviews just what makes solving cilmate extra hard, starting with the fact that the principal source of GHGs is fossil fuels, which are in his words "extremely beneficial to humanity."  They have raised starndards of living worldwide and still provide 80% of the world's energy. "Fossil fuels are readily available, so the world will not give up their benefits without equal or better alternatives."  Because of this conundrum, we are near a point of no return, where extreme consequences can spiral out of humanity's control.

Dr. Hansen has been a first-hand witness to humanity's failure to act over the last 35 years or so and his exasperation with that and his desperation to communicate to those in power about our increasingly limited options is abundantly clear. He's been advising governments around the world on possible approaches with little of the urgent response that is warranted.  He delves into some of these details but then finally hones on in the three actions that are required to successfully address climate and achieve the bright future we desire for our children.

The first is a near-global carbon tax or fee.  It is the sine qua non required to address the "tragedy of the commons" problem" wherein fossil fuels waste products can be dumpted in the atmosphere for free.  There can be a range of approaches, yet something that penalizes those dumping GHGs is required to be enacted globally. A corollary to a carbon fee is a "clean energy portfolio standard," with government policies that are far more supportive of nuclear power.

The second major policy requirement, is the need for the West to cooperate with and support the clean energy needs of emerging and developing nations. There are economic imbalances with developed nations having caused the past emissions but emerging nations increasingly being the driver of future emissions:

The clear need is to replace the world’s huge fossil fuel energy system with clean energies,
which likely would include a combination of “renewables” and nuclear power. Even if the
renewables provide most of the energy, engineering and economic analyses indicate that
global nuclear power probably needs to increase by a factor of 2-4 to provide baseload power
to complement intermittent renewable energy, especially given growing demands of China,
India and other emerging economies. The scale of China’s energy needs makes it feasible to drive down the costs of renewables and nuclear power below the cost of fossil fuels.

Lastly, Dr. Hansen proposes that "a multitude of actions are required within less than a decade to reduce and even reverse Earth’s energy imbalance for the sake of minimizing the enormous ongoing geoengineering of the planet; specifically, we will need to cool the planet to avoid consequences for young people that all people would find unconscionable."

References:

"A Miracle Will Occur" is Not Sensible Climate Policy, by James Hansen, Pushker Kharecha, Makiko Sato, Columbia University, Earth Insitute's Climate Science & Solutions, December 7, 2023.

Columbia University, Climate Science, Awareness and Solutions Newsletter, "Groundhog Day. Another Gobsmackingly Bananas Month. What’s Up?, sent on January 4, 2024 from the same team.

"Dire Warnings from Dr. Hansen and Team, by Valerie Gardner, Nucleation Capital, Dec. 22, 2023.

Published by Nucleation Capital in Advanced Nuclear, Asset manager support, Brilliant thinkers, Carbon emissions, Climate change, Climate innovation fund, Climate mayhem, Construction costs, Energy abundance, Environmental support for nuclear, Extreme weather, Future of Energy, International support for nuclear, Investor activity, Land Use by Energy, LINKS, Nuclear competitiveness, Nuclear financing, Nuclear innovation, Nuclear maritime propulsion, Nuclear R&D, Philanthropic support for nuclear, Politicians supporting nuclear, Pro-nuclear campaign, Solving climate, Solving nuclear waste, US competitiveness, Venture capital support for nuclear, Zero emission energy

August 27, 2023

Pronuclear Advocates & Allies

About the Pronuclear Climate Movement

Pronuclear climate advocacy has been around for only about a decade but it has grown rapidly. It consists mostly of young people who understand the urgency of the climate crisis and recognize that nuclear energy is a way to help us transition away from fossil fuels. They believe we should protect existing nuclear plants providing large amounts of clean energy and build more.  They have worked to save plants slated for premature closure, like Diablo Canyon in California and Palisades in Michigan. And they continue to work to save existing nuclear plants around the world, reform clean energy policies that exclude nuclear and favor renewables and educate the public about the benefits of nuclear. This is a reflection of growing support for nuclear power in general and a recognition that the goal of the climate movement is to prioritize retirenent of fossil fuel plants—whose massive volume of waste emissions is forcing the warming of our planet—not shut nuclear, whose waste hurts no one and is actually a valuable future energy resource.

The pronuclear movement consists of mostly smaller, independent groups that do grassroots organizing around a theme, such as working to prevent the closure of a local nuclear power plant. Fortunately, many of these groups are interconnected yielding suprisingly effective coordination when it matters. Many also have broader goals, such as the Climate Coalition, which aims to strengthen the climate movement overall by uniting climate activists of all stripes in support of an "all-of-the-above" nuclear-inclusive approach to clean energy. These groups can use your help.

How to Support the Pronuclear Climate Movement

For those who want to support nuclear power in addition to (or in lieu of) investing in next-generation technologies through Nucleation Capital, we provide the following recommendations:

  1. Stop Supporting Anti-Nuclear Organization: Stop sending donations to the Sierra Club, NRDC, 350.org, Friends of the Earth, League of Conservation Voters, or Greenpeace. These large NGOs remain staunchly anti-nuclear and that is primarily what is dividing the climate movement.
  2. Urge your NGO to Prioritize Climate: If you have been a member or supporter of an anti-nuclear environmental group, let them know you don't support their anti-nuclear positions—which are contrary to their supposed efforts to solve climate—and won't support them until they acknowledge the value of nuclear energy for combating carbon emissions.
  3. Actively Support Pronuclear Groups:  Throw your support behind one or more of the pronuclear nonprofits that are working hard to save existing power plants and to advocate for nuclear power. We have curated the following lists to help you find organizations or individuals to support.

Nucleation's Top 5 Pronuclear Organizations

1. CALIFORNIANS FOR GREEN NUCLEAR POWER

Californians for Green Nuclear Power, led by Dr. Gene Nelson, has  been a driving force for political accountability and responsible energy decision-making in California. Shedding light on sweetheart backroom political deals being cut by Governor Jerry Brown that were contrary to the public interest, CGNP filed suits and/or petitioned to become a party to CPUC and FERC proceedings. CGNP's work as an intervenor has been instrumental in helping to save Diablo Canyon. CGNP's in depth research continues to pose obstacles to efforts to overturn the California legislature's extension approval are being filed. (Donations can be mailed to CGNP at 1375 East Grand Ave Ste 103 #523, Arroyo Grande, CA 93420-2421.)

2. MOTHERS FOR NUCLEAR

Mothers for Nuclear was created on Earth Day 2016 by the power team of San Luis Obispo-based Heather Hoff and Kristin Zaitz, two moms to better represent the voices of women and mothers in support of Diablo Canyon and nuclear energy in general. Coordination with Californians for Green Nuclear Power, Save Clean Energy and many other groups enabled Governor Newsom to respond to strong public pressure to save Diablo Canyon when appealing to the California Legislature. Progressive women remain predominantly opposed to nuclear power, but Mothers for Nuclear have begun to rebuild the social norm of women being pronuclear. (Donations can be made online. EIN: 81-3349003)

3. GENERATION ATOMIC

Generation Atomic was created by Eric Meyers to represent the voices of younger generations and empower them to express support for nuclear in every type of venue and forum where discussions of how solve climate change is happening. The group creates fun, engaging, public actions in an effort to safeguard our future by championing the cause for nuclear energy. Not only do they use research, communication and relationship-building to advocate for nuclear, their actions typically involve dancing, singing, inflatable costumes and humor to inspire, empower and engage youth and defang anti-nuclear wrath. Operatic nuclear arias, anyone? (Donations can be made online. EIN: 81-4500446)

4. THORIUM ENERGY ALLIANCE

Thorium Energy Alliance was started in 2006 by John Kutsch to bring together scientists and energy experts who believe that thorium should be recognized as a high-value nuclear fuel and not treated as waste. Thorium is far more abundant and less radioactive than uranium, yet was rejected early on in the development of nuclear fuel. This despite evidence that the use of thorium is feasible and can be highly cost-effective. TEA works to raise awareness about thorium and hosts conferences, posts videos and serves as a central organizing and educational entity for many nuclear advocates, which history was beautifully captured in the Frankie Fenton documentary film "Atomic Hope." (Donations of cash or cars can be made online.)

5. CLIMATE COALITION

Climate Coalition was founded in 2016 by Valerie Gardner and a group of technology-oriented climate activists who recognized how much stronger the climate movement would be if climate advocates were not fighting amongst themselves. Unfortunately, activists who support renewables often ardently oppose nuclear power and vice versa. Climate Coalition views this internecine conflict as the primary reason why global effort to transition to 100% clean energy systems are delayed everywhere. So long as this fighting continues, demand for and investment in fossil fuels will remain strong. Join Climate Coalition to show your support of unity against carbon emissions.

MORE PRONUCLEAR GROUPS

There are many other worthy groups, so we've listed more of them below, followed by influencers, authors, podcasters and artists (alphabetically)

THINK TANKS & EXPERT NON-PROFITS (Alphabetical listing)

Anthropocene Institute, founded by Carl Page, bringing a pro-technology perspective and working to connect engineers, entrepreneurs, investors, institutions and thought-leaders to solve the world's greatest challenges. Helping to expand awareness of solid state nuclear activity and its potential to solve energy issues.

The Breakthrough Institute, Ted Nordhaus leads this global research think tank that identifies and promotes technological solutions and policies to environmental and human development challenges.

Campaign for a Green Nuclear Deal, Madison Hilly founded this group to serve as a nationwide advocate articulating a vision for nuclear power as the industrial heart of sustainable and enduring American prosperity that creates dignified, high-wage jobs, revives American industrial capability, and re-establishes the U.S. as the global leader of this critical technology.

Clean Air Task Force, led by Armond Cohen, analyzes and advocates for the technologies and policies needed to get to a zero-emissions, high-energy planet at an affordable cost, so the energy needs of all people are met efficiently without damaging the air we breathe or the atmosphere.

ClearPath, Rich Powell heads up this a center-right think tank whose mission is to develop and advance conservative policies that accelerate clean energy innovation and climate solutions.

Climate Protection & Restoration Initiative, Dr. James Hansen, Donn J. Viviani and other climate and legal experts, have sued the US EPA to demand its proactive enforcement of the Clean Air Act as already permitted by the existing statute against emitters of carbon dioxide pollution.

Doctors for Nuclear Energy, Dr. Chris Keefer leads an international, volunteer group of doctors that see nuclear energy as an irreplaceable part of the just transition to a low-carbon future.

ecoAmerica, founded and run by Bob Perkowitz, ecoAmerica moves society toward climate solutions by inspiring and empowering trusted national institutions and their millions of stakeholders in local communities across America to visibly act and advocate, with a commitment to Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.

Emergency Reactor, Zion Lights, a former Greenpeace activist, grew disenchanted with Greenpeace because of its antinuclear stance and founded this European-based group to provides accurate nuclear education and counterpoint to antinuclear myths.

Energy Communities Alliance (ECA) is the only non-profit, membership organization of local governments adjacent to or impacted by U.S. Department of Energy activities. We bring together local government officials to share information, establish policy positions, and promote community interests to address an increasingly complex set of constituent, environmental, regulatory, and economic development needs.

Energy Impact Center, Bret Kugelmass founded this group to offer strategic direction through a "first principles" analysis of global energy systems and focusing on areas of highest impact, through research, impactful communications and kick-starting real projects. Also, Bret is host and creator of the Titans of Nuclear Podcast.

Fastest Path to Zero, Dr. Todd Allen leads an interdisciplinary team of experts, including University of Michigan faculty, staff, and students, working to support communities as they plan and pursue ambitious climate goals, offering a variety of assessment, siting, reporting, and big data analytic tools combined with a passion for human-centered design and engagement, to help communities transform their energy systems while adapting to a changing climate.

Good Energy Collective, Dr. Jessica Lovering, Suzy Hobbs Baker, Dr. Rachel Slaybaugh launched this group to rethink nuclear policies from the ground up, in order to enable nuclear energy to help humanity reach ambitious climate goals. Using modern, socially-grounded and equitable approaches based upon progressive, democratic values, Good Energy Collective develops practical approaches to bring nuclear implementation and not just technology into the 21st century.

The Long Now, Stewart Brand founded this organization to foster long-term thinking to make mankind into a better ancestor and preserve possibilities for future generations, by imagining what our needs will be over a 10,000 year timescale, rather than just in the here and now.

Nuclear Alternative Project.  Puerto Rico has been an energy deficient country since Hurricane Maria struck a few years back. In response, the Department of Energy has granted the Nuclear Alternative Project the responsibility of preparing Puerto Rico to possibly build advanced nuclear reactors, as an alternative energy option for Puerto Rico. Unlike wind and solar, nuclear power plants hold up well in hurricanes, which show no sign of abating especially as climate gets worse.

Nuclear Innovation Alliance, Judi Greenwald leads this donor-funded think tank and industry-adjacent team that aims to bring economically competitive zero-carbon energy to the world by supporting entrepreneurialism and accelerated innovation through policy analysis, research and education.

Nuclear New York, Dr. Dietmar Detering, Isuru Seneviratne and more, is an independent, non-partisan advocacy organization working towards a prosperous decarbonized future and nature conservation, advocating for the application of nuclear energy to meet the need for reliable, emission-free energy along with well paid meaningful work that underwrites vibrant, healthy, and prosperous communities in New York and beyond.

The Oppenheimer Project, Charles Oppenheimer and family, launched this group in tandem with the release of the film, "Oppenheimer," to use the legacy of J. Robert Oppenheimer to promote thought-leadership, advocate for an expansion of nuclear energy free from the threats of proliferation or weaponization and to invest in the energy transition to carbon-free sources, including nuclear energy.

Radiant Energy Group, a think tank, research organization and corporate advisory founded by Mark Nelson and Richard Ollington, which provides leaders with the data, messaging and broader insights they need to create nuclear-inclusive roadmaps towards decarbonization. Recently published results of their global survey of public attitudes towards nuclear.

Rethinking Nuclear, Richard Steeves and others founded this group to help those taking a fresh look at why we need nuclear power and rethink positions based upon misinformation or misconceptions about the technology that are wrong.

Save Clean Energy, Isabelle Boemeke founded this group to cultivate and amplify the social media-based grassroots movement that she has developed to protect existing clean energy resources, while championing new clean infrastructure.

Stand Up for Nuclear, Paris Ortiz-Wines founded this team to serve as the international hub for global nuclear activism, providing resources, empowering action and helping individuals advocate for the protection and expansion of nuclear energy around the world.

TerraPraxis, Erik Ingersoll and Kirsty Gogan founded this organization to design and promote transformative strategies to address the most significant risks to the energy transition — mapping uncharted decarbonization territory, with a mission to accelerate scalable, innovative and equitable solutions for unsolved areas of the climate and energy challenge. Now focusing on the coal to nuclear transition.

Third Way, Josh Freed heads this national think tank that champions modern center-left ideas on a wide range of critical issues, from energy to agriculture.

WePlanet (previously RePlanet), founded by a group of European youths to broadly save the future and advocate for the prioritization of real, science-based solutions. They bravely tackle a number of big thorny issues, including the need to rethink and deploy advanced technologies for food production, nuclear power and GMOs.

INFLUENCERS, AUTHORS, PODCASTERS, ARTISTS and FILMS

A

B

C

D

  • Jack Devanney, author of the Substack: Gordion Knot News, dedicated to solving the twin problems of energy poverty and global warming.

F

  • Frankie Fenton, produced the documentary, Atomic Hope, which follows the birth, pains and growth of the pronuclear movement.

G

H

  • Dr. Robert Hargraves, author of "Thorium, Energy Cheaper than Coal" and prolific tweeter
  • Heather Hoff, a co-founder of Mothers for Nuclear, is known to show up to official meetings to speak extremely articulately on behalf of saving nuclear power plants, with her young child in tow.

K

  • Dr. Chris Keefer, articulate Canadian nuclear advocate, founder of Doctors for Nuclear Energy and the Decouple podcast, focused on the challenge of decoupling energy production from carbon emissions.

L

  • D.J. LeClear, The Rad Guy, posts extensively with easy to understand explanations about nuclear power, radiation and waste issues.
  • Zion Lights, Everything is Light, has an engaging Substack covering her learning process about nuclear energy.

N

  • Gene Nelson, Californians for Green Nuclear Energy: Prolific researcher and author of detailed legal analyses, legal briefs and published OpEds submitted on behalf of CGNP as an intervenor in California CPUC actions revealing and critiquing efforts by those seeking to replace clean nuclear energy with dirty coal or gas, of the nefarious going on's—often behind "closed doors" or hidden in data reporting euphemisms—which have enabled efforts by PacifiCorp and others to sell coal power to California without it being acknowledged as such by CAISO.
  • Mark Nelson, Radiant Energy Group: Founder and preferred nuclear advocate in debates on nuclear energy, as well as a key influencer and consultant providing a range of strategic services to improve communications and engage key stakeholders.

O

  • Richard Ollington, Radiant Energy Group: Articulate nuclear influencer and researcher providing a range of strategic services including unique types of data collection, to provide data-driven reports and pronuclear communication strategies for business and policy leaders.

P

  • Carl Page, Anthropocene Institute: Articulate nuclear advocate, philanthropist and investor bringing a pro-technology perspective and working to connect engineers, entrepreneurs, investors, institutions and thought-leaders to solve the world's greatest challenges, including support for development of low energy nuclear reactors (LENR).
  • Emmet Penney, Nuclear Barbarians: Articulate nuclear author and podcaster interviewing a range of nuclear experts about the industry, its successes and challenges.

Q

S

  • Dave Schumacher, produced The New Fire, a wonderful documentary about next-generation nuclear and some of the founders who have launched ventures)
  • Isuru Seneviratne, co-founder of Nuclear New York, is a data guru who has developed expertise in presenting energy data in a clear and compelling way that helps bring attention to the energy faux pas of those entrusted to do the right thing, specifically NYISO.
  • Oliver Stone, produced Nuclear Now: Time to Look Again, a 2023 documentary, based upon the Joshua Goldstein book, "A Bright Future."
  • Robert Stone, produced the highly influential 2013 documentary, Pandora’s Promise, arguably the first pronuclear documentary ever produced, which has subsequently inspired the pronuclear movement.

T

  • Nick Touran, Ph.D, P.E., What is Nuclear?: A technical  blog that aims to enlighten the public about the capabilities of nuclear energy so that society may embrace it as an improvement in many aspects over current energy sources. Answers many common questions and concerns about nuclear power.

Y

  • Dan Yurman, Neutron Bytes: Publishes posts and provides resources and references regarding advanced nuclear projects, expert resources and published literature about nuclearpower, and advocacy groups.

[Note: This Nuclear Advocacy page is a work in process and is neither comprehensive or completely up to date. Not included in this list are industry professional organizations, such as ANS, NEI, Nuclear Matters, World Nuclear Association, Women in Nuclear or North American Young Generation in Nuclear. If you have suggestions or corrections, please use the comment box to provide that information and we will endeavor to post it.]

Updated: April 25, 2025

Published by Valerie Gardner in Brilliant thinkers, Climate change, Climate policy, Energy abundance, Environmental support for nuclear, Fission, International support for nuclear, Investor activity, NEWS, Nuclear-inclusive energy policy, Nucleation communications, Philanthropic support for nuclear, Pro-nuclear campaign, Solving climate, Solving nuclear waste, Women in Nuclear, Zero emission energy

July 25, 2023

A New Oppenheimer Moment

We've had a resurgence of interest in and conversation about nuclear energy since the release at the end of April of Oliver Stone's exceptional documentary, Nuclear Now. But Stone's historic film, much like Robert Stone's Pandora's Promise and Dave Schumacher's The New Fire, before it, suffers from the endemic unpopularity of documentaries. People don't flock to theaters to see them. Which made (what was called) "Barbenheimer,"  the culturally clashing concurrence of opening nights for Greta Gerwig's very pink Barbie movie and Christopher Nolan's explosive Oppenheimer so different. Theaters were packed. People went to see them as double-features. The press had a field day for a week and both films exceeded box-office expectations, providing welcome relief for movie theaters everywhere.

The public is, as a result, reacquainted with J. Robert Oppenheimer (JRO to those who knew him) and his tortured if heroic role in leading the U.S.'s war time emergency program, dubbed "The Manhattan Project," to a successful conclusion: creation of the first atomic bomb. Whether or not this crowning achievement by the secretive project—that recruited the world's top physicists, engineers and scientific minds to Los Alamos, a remote area in New Mexico—and let the atomic genie out of bottle was a net positive or a net negative, may still be debated. But now that it has, we must rely on our ability to self-regulate the use of this technology for good, as JRO understood so well.

We are now in the throes of sorting out how best to limit nuclear bombs but expand the beneficial uses of atomic tech for energy, industry, agriculture and medicine. Which is why we were so pleased to have been connected with Charles Oppenheimer some weeks ago and to have been invited to participate in the Oppenheimer Exchanges, a day long event bringing together leadership from within the DOE's National Labs and a few business groups, orchestrated to coincide with opening night for the Oppenheimer film. Fortunately, this included tickets to the San Francisco premiere at the Metreon iMax Theatre and a brief pre-screening conversation between younger members of the Oppenheimer family, who provided some perspective on the family's legacy and ongoing initiatives. 

For many of us, this was an eye-opening discussion. It was just in December of 2022, that the DOE finally restored Oppenheimer’s long lost—but still widely lauded reputation—with an order vacating the Atomic Energy Commission's 1954 decision to revoke JRO's security clearance. While largely symbollic, since JRO died in 1967, the DOE's order, and Secretary Granholm's Statement about it, addressed and began to reverse the damage that had been done to the Oppenheimer name, through what the DOE called a "flawed" process.

In 1954, the Atomic Energy Commission revoked Dr. Oppenheimer’s security clearance through a flawed process that violated the Commission’s own regulations. As time has passed, more evidence has come to light of the bias and unfairness of the process that Dr. Oppenheimer was subjected to while the evidence of his loyalty and love of country have only been further affirmed. The Atomic Energy Commission even selected Dr. Oppenheimer in 1963 for its prestigious Enrico Fermi Award citing his “scientific and administrative leadership not only in the development of the atomic bomb, but also in establishing the groundwork for the many peaceful applications of atomic energy.” 

Among scientists and those who knew Oppenheimer's legacy, vindication had already begun as far back as 1963, when the Atomic Energy Commission selected Oppenheimer for the prestigious Enrico Fermi Award for his "scientific and administrative leadership not only in the development of the atomic bomb, but also in establishing the groundwork fo rthe many peaceful applications of atomic energy."

Then, in 2017, the DOE recognized JRO with the creation of the Oppenheimer Science and Energy Leadership Program, which was designed to support early and mid-career scientists and engineers to "carry on [RJO's] legacy of science serving society."

This DOE program has now graduated multiple cohorts. Many of these alumni gathered in San Francisco to discuss the Oppenheimer legacy and explore relevant topics, in particular the need for science and scientists to rise to the challenge of solving global crises with technology. Oppenheimer's leadership example is a model by which the scientific community can organize itself to tackle problems, such as climate change.  Given how badly we are doing responding to the threat posed by climate change, this is a very welcome concept.

 The Oppenheimer Science and Energy Leadership Program (OSELP) run by the DOE is “the premier leadership development program of the national Laboratory Directors’ Council, which comprises the leadership of all 17 National Labs.  The program exposes emerging leaders to the singular breadth, diversity and complexity of the National Labs and their partners in government, industry, and academia. OSELP represents a collective commitment from all 17 DOE labs to cultivate the leaders needed to sustain long-term impacts throughout the complex. Out of the OSELP has grown an alumni group now called the Oppenheimer Leadership Network, who are those who have been through the OSELP program.  The OLN is the formal network of ESELP alumni to collaboratively engage on strategic issues and produce deliverables that address major organizational, policy, scientific or other challenges within the National Labs’ mission space. We were pleased to meet many members of the OLN at the event. Now the Oppenheimer family has a new vision.  They are aiming to develop several initiatives, under the banner of The Oppenheimer Project, whose mission is to promote and advocate for solutions to mitigate the risks posed by technological development.   1) Promote JRO’s legacy and encourage scientific leaders to discuss and address today’s existential threats.2) Advocate and educate about nuclear energy, for increased cooperation on energy and decreased threats of weapons.3) Invest in the energy transition to carbon-free energy sources including nuclear energy. Already, Charles Oppenheimer, JRO's grandson, has come out strongly for nuclear power in a Time Magazine Ideas article, entitled Nuclear Energy's Moment Has Come, published May 11, 2023. In it, Charles calls for a "Manhattan Project" for carbon-free energy production.

In addition to having the support of the younger members of the Oppenheimer family, The Oppenheimer Project has received the support of Lynn Orr, a former Under Secretary for Science and Energy at the DOE and now at Stanford University, and Dr. Larry Brilliant, a physician, epidemiologist and senior counselor at the Skoll Foundation, as advisers. There are now some dozens of graduates of the OSELP and OLN members who could also participate. Given how poorly we are doing mounting the appropriate response to the threat from continued emissions, extending Oppenheimer's inimitable complex project management legacy to tackling this new global challenge has the potential to be significant development in the fight against climate change. 

Published by Valerie Gardner in Advanced Nuclear, Artificial Intelligence, Brilliant thinkers, Carbon emissions, Climate change, Climate mayhem, Climate policy, Construction costs, Energy abundance, Future of Energy, Government support, History Timeline, History-making, Investor activity, NEWS, Nuclear competitiveness, Nuclear innovation, Philanthropic support for nuclear, Pro-nuclear campaign, Regulatory reform, Scientific debate, Solving climate, Solving nuclear waste, Uranium & Mining, US competitiveness, US technological leadership, Zero emission energy

June 30, 2023

Screen “Nuclear Now”

Nucleation Capital sponsored free screenings of Oliver Stone's timely documentary, Nuclear Now, through June. Now you can stream this film through iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, Vudu, Microsoft Store/X-box, and cable-on-demand platforms like Comcast, Spectrum and Cox. Stone finally clears away the myths and fictions about this powerful source of carbon-free energy with a surprisingly positive and even encouraging film. Learn why a growing number of energy and climate experts call for the use of nuclear power in humanity's fight against fossil fuel emissions.

Oliver Stone’s documentary “Nuclear Now” opened in New York, Los Angeles and other markets across the U.S. and Canada on April 27th with great critical acclaim. Many theaters held a panel discussion after the screening, so viewers could continue the conversation. We hosted a series of virtual panel discussions that were well attended.  We have one final panel planned for later this summer. If you would like to learn about that and have not previously signed up to attend an event, use this registration link and we will send you an invitation to this event. If you have already signed up for an event, you don't need to do so again.

Schedule of Events

April 27, 2023
May 1, 2023

The film premiers in 350 theaters around the the country. Check for theaters and purchase tickets online through this link.

May 2, 2023

(5:00 pm PT/8:00 pm ET)

The 1st VIRTUAL PANEL DISCUSSION, hosted by Nucleation Capital, for those who were able to attend a viewing during the film's premier in theaters. To obtain the calendar invite and Zoom Link to attend this discussion, click this link to register. [PAST EVENT]

May 11, 2023

(5:00 pm PT/8:00 pm ET)

The 2nd VIRTUAL PANEL DISCUSSION, hosted by Nucleation Capital, for those who were able to access the GWU screening link. To obtain the calendar invite and Zoom Link to attend this discussion, click this link to register. [PAST EVENT]

May 25, 2023

(5:00 pm PT/8:00 pm ET)

The 3rd VIRTUAL PANEL DISCUSSION, hosted by Nucleation Capital, for those who register to view the film through Nucleation's Sponsored Screening Link. Fill in our registration form, and we will send you a link to download and stream the film. You will also receive a calendar invite and Zoom Link to attend this discussion, click this link to register. [PAST EVENT]

June 6, 2023

(5:00 pm PT/8:00 pm ET)

The 4th VIRTUAL PANEL DISCUSSION, hosted by Nucleation Capital, for those who register to view the film through Nucleation's Sponsored Screening Link. Fill in our registration form, and we will send you a link to download and stream the film. You will also receive a calendar invite and Zoom Link to attend this discussion, click this link to register. [PAST EVENT]

Stay tuned . . .

(Nuclear Movie Director Panel . . . being planned for later this summer.)

Streaming and other licenses

The Nuclear Now Film

(https://nuclearnowfilm.com)

There are many ways that NUCLEAR NOW can be licensed for viewing by groups or institutions through the filmmaker and media partners, including RoCo and Participant Media. Please visit the website to learn more.

Original publication date: April 29, 2023. Updated May 15 and June 30.

Published by Valerie Gardner in Brilliant thinkers, Carbon emissions, Climate change, Climate mayhem, Climate policy, Energy abundance, Environmental support for nuclear, Fossil fuels, Future of Energy, NEWS, Pro-nuclear campaign, US technological leadership, Zero emission energy

April 20, 2023

Nucleation Presents at ARPA-E Fission Summit


Valerie Gardner, founder and managing partner of Nucleation Capital, and Dr. Rachel Slaybaugh, a partner at DCVC, presented remarks on the topic of "Procuring Investments for Commercialization" in the concluding session of ARPA-E's Fission Summit covering Technology to Market, held in Hollywood, California, April 18-20, 2023.

This was the 2023 Annual Fission Program Review Meeting being held as a showcase of all of the groups funded by ARPA-E for cutting edge research and development of new fission technologies and materials.

Day 1 of the program covered the CURIE and OnWARDS Programs provided an opportunity for the grantees to do project "lightening talks," and covered topics including NRC Engagement, Technology-to-Market preparedness, Industry Perspectives on Reprocessing and Legal Considerations. There were also presentations from TerraPower, GE Global Research, the IDNL, Deep Isolation, Brigham Young University and Citrine Informatics.

Day 2 of the program covered Processing Technologies, Advanced Reactor Waste Disposal, Materials, Microreactors and Enabling Technologies.  In addition to remarks from Jon Carmack, Danny Cunningham,, Jenifer Shafer adn Bob Ledoux, there were a range of panels that included speakers from Dow Chemical, EPRI, Southern Company and Westinghouse. The CURIE, ONWARDS, GEMINA, MEITNER AND OPEN Program grantees also gave more lightening talks.

On the third and final day of the event, the discussion shifted to commercialization and raising capital.  After Danny Cunningham of ARPA-E gave a quick overview of "How to Commercialize an Idea, John Bistline of EPRI covered a view of the Energy Market in Transition. Following this, Valerie and Rachel discussed how ventures procure investments from venture capital. They presented an overview of how venture capital works and the range of financing prospects that young companies could expect. In a final hat tip to innovation, Valerie described how innovation in the finance and venture fields was enabling a range of non-traditional funds to enter the market with missions to fund high-risk innovation technologies such as advanced nuclear.  To view Valerie's slides for the presentation, click the image below. 


Learn more about ARPA-E's Funding Programs, please see this link.

Published by Valerie Gardner in Advanced Nuclear, Brilliant thinkers, Climate policy, Energy abundance, Future of Energy, Government support, History Timeline, History-making, Investor activity, NEWS, Nuclear competitiveness, Nuclear financing, Nuclear innovation, Nucleation communications, Politicians supporting nuclear, Pro-nuclear campaign, Solving climate, US technological leadership, Zero emission energy

March 21, 2023

Oliver Stone’s “Nuclear Now” Film Delivers

Oliver Stone’s new pronuclear documentary “Nuclear Now” has announced distribution in North American and will be coming to a theatre near you later this spring. The three-time Academy Award winner signed Abramorama and Giant Pictures for the right to screen the film in theaters and on streaming platforms. Nuclear Now will open in New York, Los Angeles and other markets across the U.S. and Canada beginning on April 28th, followed by its release to digital and streaming services.

The film, based on the 2019 book by Dr. Joshua S. Goldstein, "A Bright Future", makes the case that nuclear is a vital piece of our clean energy solution to climate change. Stone was able to obtain extraordinary access to people in the industry around the world, including Nucleation's managing partner, Rod Adams and nuclear influencer, Isabelle Boemeke, among others. But Stone also was able to film unique, revealing and damning footage of the acknowledgement of responsibility of Russian operators of the Chernobyl plant for having neglected their jobs and allowing that accident to happen, which caused unimaginable damage to the nuclear industry.

Unlike so many Hollywood disaster and dystopia films, “Nuclear Now” contains a hopeful, “we can do this” message. It features a small selection of some of the many scientists, engineers and communicators working to develop or enable the kinds of advanced nuclear energy systems that are being added to the Nucleation Capital portfolio. In addition to Rod Adams the film’s stars include Jake DeWitt (Oklo), Caroline Cochran (Oklo), Shannon Bragg-Sitton (INL), Ashley Finan (NRIC), Isabelle Boemeke (Isodope), and Joshua Goldstein, the author of the book, "A Bright Future."

“This is, in my mind, the greatest story of our time,” Oliver Stone said in an interview with Deadline, “discussing humanity’s arc from poverty to prosperity and its mastery of science to overcome the modern demand for more and more energy. I am thrilled that Richard Abramowitz and the teams at Abramorama, Mediawan, ROCO, Giant, Think-Film Impact Production and Participant have come on board to help share this important message with audiences across the country and around the world.”

Updates:
  1. Now you can listen to Rod Adams interviewing Oliver Stone and Joshua Goldstein, co-writers of Nuclear Now, for Atomic Show #305. In their conversation, Rod explores their personal journeys from being reflexively opposed to nuclear energy to becoming committed proponents of nuclear power as an important tool for mankind, in a climate stressed world.
  2. May 2, 2023: Nucleation Capital hosted the first of several virtual gatherings for those wishing to discuss the film. We invited anyone who was going to attend a local screening to join our virtual Zoom discussion and get their questions answered. This was a very informative and lively discussion. (Sorry, it was not recorded but we will do more.)
  3. May 5, 2023 Update:  If you were unable to see the film in the theater, we will be hosting a free screening for those who have not had the chance to see the film. You can now sign up here to get a link to see the film during the coming week or weeks. We will then send you a notification about the next virtual panel discussions, which are now scheduled for Thursday, May 11th and Thursday, May 25th at 5:00 pm PT/8:00 pm ET (on both days).

_________________

Read more at Deadline, "'Nuclear Now' Trailer: Oliver Stone's Documentary Makes Case for Atomic Energy to Solve Climate Change," by Matt Grobar, March 21, 2023.

New York Times, ‘Nuclear Now’ Review: Oliver Stone Makes the Case for Power Plants, by Brandon Yu, NYT Film Critic, April 27, 2023.

HuffPost, Oliver Stone Wants To Atone For Hollywood’s Sins Against Nuclear Energy, by Alexander Kaufman, May 7, 2023.

Published by Valerie Gardner in Brilliant thinkers, Carbon emissions, Climate change, Energy abundance, Future of Energy, NEWS, Nuclear competitiveness, Nuclear-inclusive energy policy, Pro-nuclear campaign, US technological leadership, Zero emission energy
Featured Image

March 20, 2023

El Salvador Explores Nuclear Entry with Gen IV


El Salvador has just taken a small but meaningful step towards building an advanced climate-resilient economy and accelerating next-generation nuclear. The government has decided to explore becoming a nuclear nation through the deployment of thorium-based molten salt reactors, a Gen IV design, thereby leapfrogging traditional nuclear technology.

As reported by Power Magazine, the El Salvador government signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Thorium Energy Alliance to “formally establish the framework for cooperation between Thorium Energy Alliance and the DGEHM to develop a comprehensive and strategic plan to deploy, in an advanced and safe manner, energy generation through thorium-powered reactors and thermal energy storage systems.”

The MOU was negotiated and signed by Daniel Alvarez, El Salvador's director general of Energy, Hydrocarbons, and Mines (DGEHM) and John Kutsch, executive director of the Thorium Energy Alliance. What is most impressive about this agreement is that, in selecting this path, El Salvador shows that it recognizes the abundant benefits of Gen IV nuclear designs and has decided to assume some of the risk of being an early adopter of an innovative technology perhaps in exchange for being one of the earliest beneficiaries as well.

“This is not just a deep dive into technologies and rollout issues, and a white paper proposal, this is something that El Salvador is dedicated to making happen,” Kutsch said in a presentation given at the signing ceremony.

Learn more at Power Magazine, El Salvador Sets Sights on Joining the 'Nuclear Power Club,' by Aaron Larson, Mar 20, 2023.

Published by Nucleation Capital in Advanced Nuclear, Brilliant thinkers, Carbon emissions, Climate change, Climate policy, Future of Energy, Government support, History Timeline, History-making, International support for nuclear, LINKS, Nuclear competitiveness, Nuclear financing, Nuclear-inclusive energy policy, Politicians supporting nuclear, Pro-nuclear campaign, Solving climate, US technological leadership, Zero emission energy
Featured Image

December 22, 2022

Dire warnings from Dr. Hansen and team

Those who receive Dr. James Hansen's occasional newsletter from his Climate Science, Awareness and Solutions team, will have seen some dire reports before. Still, nothing we have seen is quite as unimaginable or alarming as learning that global warming is happening at the equivalent of 750,000 exploding Hiroshima atomic bombs in our atmosphere per day, every day. From burning fossil fuels. That's a lot of warming . . . !

No one likes to think about nuclear bombs. Their very bad reputation already negatively impacts how people think about nuclear energy (even though bombs are designed to explode and nuclear energy is designed so it can't explode). But in this case, Hansen's comparison really helps. Not just as to the scale of the warming problem but as to level of threat.

Earth's Energy Imbalance chart and climate response.

Fig. 1: 12-month running-mean of Earth’s energy imbalance, based on CERES satellite data for EEI change normalized to 0.71 W/m2 mean for July 2005 – June 2015 based on in situ data.

In today's newsletter, Earth's Energy Imbalance and Climate Response Time, Hansen and team review findings recently detailed in a newly issued report called Global Warming in the Pipeline. From this report we learn that there is a lot more solar energy being absorbed by our planet than is being lost through heat radiation out into space. As they explain, the heat budget of our planet is badly out of wack. There is far more energy coming into our atmosphere than going out. As though we have put an "extra blanket" on the planet, our emissions trap heat and are causing excess warming. Dr. Hansen frames this massive experiment as “human-made geoengineering of Earth’s climate.” He writes:

Earth's Energy Imbalance (EEI) varies from year-to-year (Fig. 1), largely because global cloud amount varies with weather and ocean dynamics, but averaged over several years, EEI tells us what is needed to stabilize climate.[4] When [Dr. Hansen] gave a TED talk 10 years ago, EEI was about 0.6 W/m2, averaged over six years (that may not sound like much, but it equals the energy in 400,000 Hiroshima atomic bombs per day, every day). Now, it appears, EEI has approximately doubled, to more than 1 W/m2. [Emphasis added.] The reasons, discussed in our paper, mainly being increased growth rate of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and a reduction of human-made aerosols (fine particles in the air that reflect sunlight and cool the planet).

It appears that Dr. Hansen's 2012 TEDTalk, Why I must speak out about climate change, explained all these phenomena to us a full decade ago. So, in fact, his recent report is just providing us with an update on how little we have done to address the problem and thus how much worse things are. It is clear, we have not listened to him.

Dr. James Hansen's 2012 TEDTalk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWInyaMWBY8

In ten years, the amount of forced warming of our planet has nearly doubled and this is not a good thing.

So why has humanity failed to take the requisite actions to stabilize the climate? In characteristic understatement, we’re told it’s because of the climate’s delayed response. In other words, heat applied to oceans and ice sheets will still take a while to fully warm or melt them. Not only do the world’s oceans contain 270 times as much mass as the atmosphere, but water also needs 4 times as much energy as air to raise each unit of mass a degree in temperature. This provides a lag that allows global air temperatures to seem more normal than they really are. Without that lag, we’d likely have acted more aggressively to limit the heating. We’re just not fully experiencing how bad it really is. The good news: the climate’s delayed response gives us a little more time to take meaningful action, before we have so much disruption from our overheated world, that societies break down.

Dan Miller, a co-founder of the venture capital firm, Roda Group and a leading proponent of climate action, took time to review the entire 48 page  Global Warming in the Pipeline paper submitted by Hansen and 14 co-authors. He summarized its findings as follows:

1. The Earth Climate Sensitivity (ECS) — the Earth’s short-term response to a CO2 doubling — is higher than previously assumed. Most scientists said it was ~3ºC, but Hansen et al now say it is 4ºC or more based on paleoclimate data. This means there is more warming “in the pipeline” than previously assumed. 2. While humans have increased atmospheric CO2 by 50% since the industrial revolution, the actual climate forcing from all the added greenhouse gases is now ~4W/m^2, which is equivalent to a doubling of CO2 (i.e., CO2e (including all greenhouse gases, not just CO2) is about 560 ppm). 3. Part of the current warming has been hidden by human-made particulate air pollution (aerosols), mainly sulfur. When North America and Europe started to reduce emissions after the introduction of clean air acts in the 1970's, regional and global warming became more pronounced. In the past decades China and global shipping slashed sulfur emissions through cleaner fuels and sulfur filter systems ('scrubbers'). There are clear signals from ground, ocean and satellite based observations that the rate of global warming has recently doubled, which needs to be taken into account in risk assessments. 4. Assuming today’s forcing (4 W/m^2) stabilizes and human-made aerosols are eliminated, when all feedbacks — including “long-term” feedbacks — play out, we are on track for about 10ºC warming and 6~7ºC if aerosols stay at today’s levels. This is a “scenario” and we still control our future, though we are on track to increase climate forcing from today’s 4 W/m^2. 5. If greenhouse gas forcings keeps growing at the current rate, it could match the level PETM mass extinction within a century. We are increasing climate forcing 20X faster than in the PETM so “long-term” feedbacks won’t take as long as in the paleo record (though some feedbacks will still be much longer than a human lifetime). 6. The paper concludes that we must: (a) implement a carbon fee and border duty (Fee and Dividend); (b) "human-made geoengineering of Earth’s climate must be rapidly phased out,” i.e., we must stop emitting greenhouse gases, remove CO2 from the atmosphere, and research and implement safe solar radiation management to counter the massive geoengineering experiment we are currently running; and (c) we must improve international cooperation to allow the developing world to grow using clean energy. 7. A companion paper will be coming out that addresses the near-term shutdown of the AMOC and associated “multi-meter” sea level rise on a century timescale.

Dan Miller runs a Clubhouse group called Climate Chat. Following the release of Hansen's report, he interviewed Leon Simons, a co-author of the paper, about their findings and the implications. It was a 2.5 hour conversation.  It's not a happy topic but Dan, at least, is willing to confront the hard truths, in this case, that we must act immediately to address the climate crisis.

Part of the hard truth that is increasingly unavoidable, has to do with solutions. Once again, Dr. Hansen recognized the dilemma we have with respect to our options for solutions quite a long time ago: namely that we cannot realistically let go of fossil fuels without finding good alternatives, and the “best candidate is nuclear energy." Here he is discussing this in a 2013 interview:

Even though nuclear energy could dramatically help us alleviate emissions from fossil fuels, many people, including many smart investors, find the idea of proactively supporting nuclear power uncomfortable. They fear and loathe nuclear bombs—rightfully so—and can't emotionally separate those feelings enough to accept that there are compelling benefits from energy achieved by a related technology. Some just love "renewables," which generate energy from free wind and free sun. The costs of installing these have come way down and they are extremely popular, so what's not to like?

Nuclear, in contrast, is very hard to like.  It's so complicated and hard for people to understand, plus it's fraught with scary meltdown scenarios, exclusion zones and radioactive waste. Beside, we know that it's expensive and takes a long time to build, so with solid reasons like that to reject it, why risk putting one's own environmental credibility and "green" loyalty in question by supporting it, since it's already too unpopular to succeed, right?

This type of thinking has made nuclear power, quite likely the best solution we have for eliminating dependence on fossil fuels, easy to either ignore or outright reject. And this might have been the end of the story except for the inconvenient fact that wind and solar are not doing the job of reducing emissions.

It turns out that people not only want but societies need and demand reliable energy.  Even with cheap renewables, fossil fuel usage continues to expand. Because renewables are weather-dependent and the weather doesn't always cooperate. Which is, in turn, why more people are again revisiting the possibility of using nuclear power, because the alternative is natural gas.  This spurred Dan Miller to invite Carl Page, founder of the Anthropocene Institute, into the Climate Chat Clubhouse to explore these issues and discuss why public support for nuclear power has dramatically increased.

It seems Russia's attack of Ukraine followed by energy scarcity elevated global appreciation of several critical facets of energy systems beyond mere price. People woke up to the fact that energy supply security, grid reliability, energy price stability, climate resilience and limiting carbon are all important. Europe's dependence on Russian natural gas and now a war-induced energy crisis has re-focused the world's spotlight on nuclear energy—the only energy solution that addresses all of these critical energy needs. Germany, a nation deeply committed to nuclear phase-out, chose to delay the closures of its last nuclear power plants, rather than risk worsening their energy crisis. California choose to extend the life of Diablo Canyon for similar reasons.

Well maybe not shutting down existing plants makes sense, you might be thinking. But isn't it true that building new nuclear is too expensive and takes too long? The answer is not necessarily. Although Gen III nuclear power plant construction experiences have been mixed, with many in that class greatly delayed and vastly over-budget, a few of these Gen III plants have been built on time and in budget and nearly all are finally being completed. These are newer, safer light water designs and the learning process on those new designs has begun. Which means that costs of new builds can come down, if they get proper support. The question now for the industry and the world, is whether we are going to build on that construction knowledge to improve on past performance or abandon it.

Additionally, there's been movement in a whole new direction for nuclear technology: that of innovation.  Gen IV nuclear, or what many call advanced nuclear and next-generation nuclear, are innovative new designs on the cusp of commercialization. A new crop of developers are working to reimagine nuclear without water cooling. These designs largely rely on  physics for cooling, rather than muscular engineering. This reduces the need for back-up safety systems and redefines how small and how quickly nuclear can be built.

Next-gen is now widely expected to be smaller, modular, manufactured and constructed in a period of months and will be well-suited for use by corporate and industrial sites, college campuses, data centers, district heating systems and remote villages around the world. These advanced fission designs are engineering evolutions of previously demonstrated technologies such as molten salt, high-temperature gas and liquid metal-cooled reactors that do not require scientific discovery or breakthroughs. Fusion, which is developing the potential of magnetic confinement, inertial confinement and even metallic lattice confinement (formerly called "cold fusion") to generate massive amounts of carbon-free energy, still requires significant scientific breakthroughs but they also seeing progress and are widely expected to be ready to serve energy needs by mid-century.

[Click image to learn more about why Dr. Hansen and other scientists are suing the EPA.]

The question now is, will this growing global support for nuclear energy and the efforts of innovators to redesign nuclear for the 21st century enable us to meet our urgent climate goals?  Can we build nuclear faster while steadily reducing costs? Or will lingering antinuclear prejudice induce an investor delayed response that prevents construction of new Gen III designs and commercialization of a range of Gen IV designs?

The answer to that question will determine whether or not humanity meets or misses our very limited window to eliminate fossil fuels emissions by 2050. This is why we applaud the growing investor enthusiasm for building existing commercially-viable Gen III nuclear plants, as well as investing in the further development of innovative Gen IV designs, including fusion. We need them all if we are to have any hope of supplanting the 100 million barrels of oil burned every day and the 80% of electricity powered by coal and gas before it is too late.

According to Dr. Hansen, it is already very late and our climate situation is frighteningly dire. People need to act with urgency and purpose on climate: we can no longer afford delay. What we decide to do to move off the wrong path that we have been on up until now will set our course, perhaps permanently. We need good alternatives to fossil fuels. Nuclear power may not be environmentalists' or investors' first choice but it has decades of proven efficacy and safety. Best of all, current innovations hold the promise of being able to scale rapidly to serve the world's urgent energy needs.

Those who invest wisely into this risky "contrarian" area may ultimately reap the reward of seeing their investments succeed. If they do, it means they will have helped displace fossil fuel as the energy of choice and provided a compelling clean energy alternative. And for that, there could well be extraordinary returns.  There are plenty of risks for sure but, as it looks now, the risks of not investing in the solutions that can reduce emissions could well be far worse.

Hansen and team have  recently detailed new warnings and updated data in a newly issued report called Global Warming in the Pipeline, which has been submitted to Oxford Open Climate Change for publication. Read more of the history of Dr. James Hansen's research into the heating effect of CO2 in the atmosphere.  In August 1981, the New York Times published Study finds warming trend that could raise Sea Level, a report by Walter Sullivan about the study Dr. Hansen and six colleagues wrote which revealed the risk of sea level rise from global warming.

Published by Valerie Gardner in Advanced Nuclear, Asset manager support, Brilliant thinkers, Carbon emissions, Climate change, Climate innovation fund, Climate mayhem, Construction costs, Energy abundance, Environmental support for nuclear, Extreme weather, Future of Energy, International support for nuclear, Investor activity, Land Use by Energy, NEWS, Nuclear competitiveness, Nuclear financing, Nuclear innovation, Nuclear maritime propulsion, Nuclear R&D, Philanthropic support for nuclear, Politicians supporting nuclear, Pro-nuclear campaign, Solving climate, Solving nuclear waste, US competitiveness, Venture capital support for nuclear, Zero emission energy
Featured Image

November 23, 2022

Giving Thanks & Getting

anksgiving isn't typically a time for making investment decisions . . . but it should be.

Americans give thanks in many ways, notably through the national holiday we call "Thanksgiving." We celebrate the abundance of the land we inherited centuries ago by feasting on turkey and other delicious indigenous foods, which sustained our existence as pilgrims. The holiday of Thanksgiving has survived  generations of tumult, crisis and even war relatively unchanged.  But we've arrived at a point at which we must recognize that humanity's current path—dumping fossil fuel waste into the atmosphere that is rapidly heating our climate—is disrupting those same ecosystems which have long supported us. Thus, it might be time to consider celebrating Thanksgiving both by honoring the bounties of nature that we have enjoyed and by working to save the ecosystems that have always supported human life and reverse the damage that we are doing by investing in climate solutions.

Given how large the climate problem is, the personal actions we might take, such as turning down the heat or even buying an electric car, will not make sufficient difference. Sadly, scientists tell us that the whole world must reduce emissions by a matter of gigatons in rapid fashion and we are running out of time to act, so our modest personal actions won't make enough difference. We must seek to find things that we can do which provide greater leverage. It turns out, investing in innovation is one of the ways that small individual actions can accumulate to make a big difference.

Why innovation? We know that climate change is caused by humanity's use of fossil fuels. While we want to stop burning of coal, oil, petroleum and natural gas, at the same time, no one wants to have to go without reliable sources of electricity, heat or transportation. Thus, the dilemma we face is that clean renewables like wind and solar don't provide a direct, reliable replacement for the widely available sources of fossil fuel energy.

What we need are better clean energy alternatives. We are forced to burn these dirty, carbon-emitting fuels to  have comfortable, warm, well-furnished homes and functioning societies because we don't have better options available. We don't want intermittent lights, intermittent refridgeration, intermittent heart monitors or even intermittent Youtube videos. This is what makes addressing climate change so challenging for Americans: we're not willing to go cold turkey on the quality of life that we have enjoyed as a result of the abundance of fossil fuels. This is why we desperately need better options!

Investing in innovative ventures can accelerate their success in commercializing better energy alternatives. We have very few clean energy options and they all have significant downsides—such as intermittency—and there simply is nothing that is a runaway winner in terms of competing with natural gas or petroleum fuels. Which is why it is time for investors to step up and invest in those ventures innovating to create these improved technologies. These may be risky investments but if they can produce a broader set of clean energy options that enable us to maintain our lifestyles while reducing emissions, they will be very successful investments.

This is what Nucleation Capital is doing. Providing an investment vehicle that allows more investors to invest in some of the most exciting, most competitive clean energy alternatives coming out of the advanced nuclear sector.  For many, investing in solar or wind power is appealing because they think "renewable" energy is what's needed. In fact, wind and solar power will always be intermittent—and that will never compete directly with fossil fuels. What's needed to replace fossil fuels is clean, reliable, dense energy and many energy experts see next-gen nuclear as our best option.

Nuclear energy may not yet be as popular as renewables but what's popular doesn't necessarily translate into great investment returns. Even winning consensus investments don't beat winning contrarian investments.  Which is why, for those looking for impactful investments that are off the beaten path and which, by their nature, can produce extraordinary returns, nothing can beat nuclear energy innovation, which we believe will be the black swan of clean energy.

The advanced nuclear sector is the most under-appreciated clean energy sector that is innovating as fast as conceivably possible. This sector, more than any other, holds out tremendous promise for a technological solution to our climate dilemma, yet these innovators need access to more capital. Next-generation nuclear innovators are solving safety, scalability, cost, construction time and all the other issues we have long associated with traditional nuclear and making it into the energy source of our future. They are, for example, developing reactor designs that won't require water cooling or siting next to bodies of water. Innovators are also working to solve other problems that have held back the growth of nuclear, namely closing the fuel cyle and providing safe, permanent waste storage, among other things.

So, if you'd like to do more than just give thanks with your turkey, consider allocating some of your discretionary investment capital to a fund investing in the innovations that would allow us to end our dependence on fossil fuels. We expect that, over the next decade, the nations of the world will begin deploying any number of advanced designs to power cities, factories, campuses, ships, industry and homes without emissions, thereby maintaining energy security and grid reliability without needing fossil fuels. We'll even use nuclear to generate synthetic hydrocarbons (for where liquid fuels are still needed) and power carbon drawdown so can begin to reverse global warming.

Yes, investing in advanced nuclear is high risk. Yet it only poses the risk of losing your money (so allocate accordingly). Not solving climate change, however, risks losing everything we hold dear. Our propery, our children, our traditions. Which is why more investors are considering allocating a portion of their investible capital to investments that can meaningfully reduce demand for fossil fuels. Whether they can invest a lot or little doesn't matter so much: they will still get the satisfaction of knowing that they are using their money to make a difference in the final years that we have to rescue our future.

*  The "Th" image above is the period table symbol for the element Thorium, and comes curtesy of the Thorium Energy Alliance, which advocates for the use of thorium along with uranium as a fuel for nuclear energy. 

Published by Valerie Gardner in Advanced Nuclear, Asset manager support, Brilliant thinkers, Carbon emissions, Carbon negative, Climate change, Climate innovation fund, Climate mayhem, Climate policy, Construction costs, Corporate purpose, Energy abundance, Environmental support for nuclear, Extreme weather, Fund sustainability, Future of Energy, International support for nuclear, Investor activity, Land Use by Energy, NEWS, Nuclear competitiveness, Nuclear financing, Nuclear innovation, Nuclear R&D, Nuclear-inclusive energy policy, Philanthropic support for nuclear, Politicians supporting nuclear, Pro-nuclear campaign, Scientific debate, Solving climate, Solving nuclear waste, US competitiveness, Venture capital support for nuclear, Zero emission energy
Older Posts ›

Sign up to receive Nucleation Insights

© 2025 Nucleation Capital | Terms & Policies

Nucleation-Logo