Energy Policy Now offers clear talk on the policy issues that define our relationship to energy and its impact on society and the environment. The series is produced by the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania and hosted by energy journalist Andy Stone. Join Andy in conversation with leaders from industry, government, and academia as they shed light on today's pressing energy policy debates.
For the month of August, we're highlighting episodes from the 2025-2026 season of Energy Policy Now. We'll be back with new content, and a new season, on September the 8th. An economic sociologist discusses the growing heat dangers facing last-mile delivery drivers, and why federal protections remain stalled. --- E-commerce has transformed the way goods move through the American economy, driving…
The modern agricultural system delivers an extraordinary abundance and variety of food at relatively low cost, thanks in part to abundant and affordable energy. Can those benefits be preserved without creating unacceptable exposure to disruption? --- Recent disruptions to food and energy markets have drawn renewed attention to the links between agriculture, energy, and global trade. Fertilizer…
Can the energy choices we make today influence affordability for decades to come? --- Affordability has become one of the defining issues in American politics. Rising costs for housing, healthcare, groceries, and energy continue to strain household budgets. But economist Heather Boushey argues that affordability runs much deeper than prices alone. It reflects how the economy is structured, the…
Southwest Power Pool's expansion into the West marks a major step toward greater regional coordination of the electric grid. --- Earlier this year the Southwest Power Pool, the electric grid operator for much of the central United States, expanded into the Western Interconnection, becoming the first Regional Transmission Organization to operate in both the Eastern and Western grids. The move comes…
For years, electricity prices broadly tracked inflation. New pressures may be changing that. --- Electricity prices have become a major political issue in the United States, with policymakers increasingly focused on rising utility bills and the costs of meeting growing electricity demand. At the same time, renewable energy has often been blamed for driving prices higher. But what does the data…
Clean energy funding under the GGRF remains frozen, with projects on hold and questions over federal spending authority unresolved. --- The $27 billion Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund has become a focal point of the Trump administration's efforts to roll back federal clean energy policy. The program was designed to finance clean energy and emissions-reducing projects by channeling public funds…
The Greenhouse Gas Protocol, the global standard for corporate emissions accounting, is increasingly embedded in policy, drawing new scrutiny of its governance. --- The Greenhouse Gas Protocol is the global standard for how companies measure and report their greenhouse gas emissions. It is used by most large companies worldwide and increasingly underpins climate disclosure requirements in places…
Helen Thompson, a political economist at Cambridge, examines how geopolitical conflict has shaped global oil and gas markets, with implications for the current Gulf crisis. --- Geopolitical conflict has long shaped the evolution of global energy systems. Over the past 70 years, periods of relative stability in oil and gas markets have repeatedly given way to disruption, from the Suez Crisis to the…
Insurance is on the front lines of climate risk, and may help shape how we respond to it. --- Insurance is one of the quiet pillars of the modern economy. It underpins where we build, how we invest, and whether communities can recover after disaster. In many ways, it defines what risks we're willing, and able, to live with. But that foundation is under strain. Across the United States, rising…
The Arctic is emerging as a new front in the global competition over strategic minerals, raising questions about how the supply chains behind the energy transition will be governed. --- In recent months, Arctic resources have moved to the center of geopolitical debate. President Trump has publicly proposed that the United States take control of Greenland, citing its strategic location and mineral…