TITLE: Reversing Climate Change

ABSTRACT: Solving climate change requires far more than the total elimination of annual greenhouse gas emissions. The complete decarbonization of electricity, agriculture, transportation, building heat, and industrial sectors may reduce the rate at which we accumulate heat, but will have no impact on the previous emissions that already, and will continue to, cause the majority of radiative forcing. Drawing inspiration from mathematics and physics, Bret Kugelmass derives a pathway towards global scale removal of greenhouse gas on a timeline fast enough to spare the most vulnerable communities. He presents a counterfactual to calls for policy “solutions” of sacrifice, efficiency, and taxes which often ignore energy demands and political realities of the developing world. He will argue that in deploying nuclear energy at scale, we can power the transition to a global carbon negative economy in a way that aligns short-term individual economic motivations with long-term environmental preservation.

BIO:Bret Kugelmass is a former technology entrepreneur who has dedicated his focus to climate and energy challenges. One of the early pioneers in commercializing unmanned aerospace technology he founded and remained CEO of Airphrame Inc. for five years up until its acquisition. Prior to this, he received his masters in robotics from Stanford University and his earlier work includes designing lunar rover control systems for NASA and a concept electric car for Panasonic. In 2017, he launched a Washington, DC based research institute, the Energy Impact Center, focused on exploring the challenges and opportunities of nuclear power's role in deep decarbonization. Their work includes techno-economic analysis of energy technologies, hosting clean-tech prize competitions, and publishing audio interviews with hundreds of experts under the “Titans of Nuclear” brand.