A featured post by EBA YLC Author Cary Glynn
Young energy lawyers often find it overwhelming to keep up with developments in the field. Given the technical and ever-changing nature of energy law-not to mention energy technologies, markets, and other key topics-following current debates can certainly be a challenge. But there’s a potentially untapped source of information to help new lawyers learn about the field and stay informed: your favorite podcast app. While energy law and policy podcasts may not be topping the charts on Spotify, there are many worth listening to. Energy podcasts range from daily news updates to academic deep dives and cover a wide assortment of topics, focusing on market dynamics, environmental issues, and everything in between.
Below, we highlight a few podcasts that might be of particular interest to young energy lawyers (and other EBA members!). These podcasts span a variety of perspectives, so listening to a broad set might prove the most beneficial. Beyond listening to new episodes, try exploring their back catalogs for topics of interest!
Grid Talk (Department of Energy)
Grid Talk is an interview-based podcast from the Department of Energy’s Voices of Experience, an initiative that supports the modernization of the electric grid. Energy journalist Marty Rosenberg speaks with energy leaders and innovators focusing on grid issues.
Open Access (FERC)
Open Access is FERC’s official podcast. Episodes are often short and present forthright interviews with FERC officials or discussions regarding recent FERC actions.
Politico Energy
The Politico Energy podcast presents a daily, bite-sized update on energy policy news. It helps listeners stay informed on the key topics of the day.
Volts
David Roberts is a veteran climate journalist and hosts the Volts podcast (also a newsletter). Episodes alternate between Roberts reading his own posts on climate change and interviewing analysts, technologists, and policymakers, including many in the energy field.
Catalyst
Investor Shayle Kann hosts the podcast Catalyst, which consists primarily of interviews with experts about the future of decarbonization. The podcast focuses on climate tech companies.
The Carbon Copy
Like Catalyst, the Carbon Copy is a co-production of Post Script Media and Canary Media, and it covers decarbonization trends. A weekly narrative-news show covering the energy transition, it is hosted by journalist Stephen Lacey, who you might know as a former host of the Energy Gang podcast with Katherine Hamilton and now-Director of the DOE Loan Programs Office, Jigar Shah.
The Energy Markets Podcast
Bryan Lee hosts the Energy Markets Podcast. The second sentence of its Apple Podcasts description is apt: “lots of wonky FERC stuff.” Lee also covers state-level utility regulation.
Redefining Energy
Investment bankers Gerard Reid and Laurent Segalen debate cutting-edge issues in energy policy, markets, and finance on the Redefining Energy podcast. The podcast, which covers energy topics from an international perspective, is published bi-monthly.
Columbia Energy Exchange
Columbia Energy Exchange is presented by the Columbia Center on Global Energy Policy at Columbia University, School of International and Public Affairs. It features conversations with global energy leaders, with an emphasis on geopolitics.
CleanLaw (Harvard Law School)
Harvard Law School’s Environmental & Energy Law Program publishes the CleanLaw podcast, which predominantly includes the program’s experts and covers energy and environmental law. The podcast has a generally academic perspective.
Energy Policy Now (Penn)
The Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania presents Energy Policy Now. Like the other podcasts from universities, it is academic in orientation, and covers energy and environmental issues.
Energy Exchange (EBA)
Last but not least, the Energy Bar Association itself launched a podcast in 2021 to celebrate EBA’s 75th Anniversary. The podcast is hosted by Mosby Perrow, an EBA past president, who interviews energy experts.
Let us know if you think we missed any! We would be glad to follow-up with a part two. We hope you give a few of the podcasts above a try and use them to stay informed about the energy issues that affect-or will affect-your practice.
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EBA’s Young Lawyers Council (YLC) provides attorneys who have been practicing 8 years or fewer an opportunity to connect with likeminded young professionals and seasoned practitioners. Through this council, new energy law practitioners will develop lasting relationships with other EBA attorneys. Members of the YLC periodically write blog posts for EBA’s blog covering topics of interest to young energy lawyers.