I'm On Jordan Peterson’s Podcast Today
We talk about energy poverty, the importance of electricity to women and girls, nuclear energy, and a lot more
I’ve been following Jordan Peterson for a long time. I have long admired his courage and work ethic. Members of my family have been propelled forward in very positive ways by his messages about personal responsibility, focus, and hard work. Thus, it’s a real pleasure to let you know that I am on the Dr. Jordan B. Peterson Podcast today.
We recorded the episode on June 30. (I was here in Austin for the recording. Jordan was in Canada.) We covered a lot of ground in an hour and 45 minutes. We talked for another hour or so for a DailyWire+ segment, which is behind a paywall. It was a serious conversation, but also a lot of fun.
We talked about my recent articles here on Substack, including “Let Them Eat Solar Panels,” the importance of electricity to women and girls, and the new documentary on electricity I’m finishing with my colleague, Tyson Culver, (it’s called Juice: Power, Politics, and the Grid). We also discussed why we need nuclear, N2N as the best no-regrets climate strategy, and why the U.S. and other rich countries should be helping build reliable electricity generation capacity in developing countries. I also talked about the paper I have written for the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship, the new group that Jordan helped start. Lots of other bold-faced names are on board with the ARC project, including Philippa Stroud, Bjorn Lomborg, Niall Ferguson, and others.
I will be presenting that paper, “Powering The Unplugged: Overcoming Barriers to Electrification in the Developing World,” at the ARC’s inaugural conference in London in late October. The paper (which is about 12,000 words) builds on the themes I covered in my most recent book, A Question of Power: Electricity and the Wealth of Nations. It focuses on how developing countries can overcome problems like corruption and lack of capital, and why policymakers (and lenders) in Western countries should put electrification goals ahead of decarbonization goals. I will be writing more about that paper here on Substack in the coming months.
Okay. That’s enough for now. Again, here’s a link to the podcast. Please give it a listen and share it.
Thanks.
Before you go:
Click that ♡ button. Today is Michael’s birthday (he’s 28!). He likes those likes!
Happy Birthday Michael and great job
Great interview, well done Robert.
I think you correctly highlighted the issue with rare earth minerals for lithium batteries and and rare earth magnets for motors. Sourcing cobalt is expensive and hazardous. It’s estimated that 90% of supply comes from China. That’s a risky supply chain.
But I’d like to get you thoughts on Elon’s plans to switch to a battery chemistry and motors with zero need for these rare earths, specifically lithium iron phosphate (LFP) and motors without rare earth magnets, I think he commented on this in the last annual shareholders meeting or when he talked about his Master Plan 3 earlier this year referring to the next gen platform, more specifically Colin Campbell declared that the Tesla power train team will eliminate rare earth magnets from their motors calling it “next gen permanent magnet motor” which does not include any rare earths, maybe substitutes with neodymium combined with iron..
Source: Interesting Engineering article by John Loeffler dated 5/1/23.
Thoughts?