Host Alexia Kelly sits down with Richard Lawrence, founder of Overlook Investments Group and co-founder of multiple climate-focused organizations, to discuss carbon markets, climate philanthropy, and what has driven his work in both over the decades. Richard shares how a medical mission to Honduras transformed into a 20-year journey of installing more than 400,000 fuel-efficient cookstoves and how high-integrity carbon finance makes it possible.

Key Topics Discussed:

• The Origin of Proyecto Mirador: How an 11-year-old girl identified a public health crisis that led to a massive climate solution.
• Continuous Improvement: Why technical innovation—like a simple $1 ash wiper—is the key to project durability.
• The "Top of the Pyramid": Comparing high-performance investment portfolios to high-integrity carbon projects.
• The Future of the Market: The role of transparency, the ICVCM, and transitioning from "voluntary" to "verified" carbon markets.
• Tripling Down on Climate Philanthropy: Why the ultra-wealthy need to increase their payout ratios to address the climate crisis.

Let’s be honest—climate messaging isn’t landing the way it needs to.

In this episode, Alexia Kelly is joined by Kalee Kreider, one of the world’s leading climate communicators, to talk about why… and what we can do about it.

From working with Al Gore on An Inconvenient Truth to advising global organizations, Kalee has spent decades figuring out what actually connects with people—and what completely misses the mark.

They dive into:

• Why your climate message probably isn’t reaching the people you think it is
• The danger of “smart-sounding” language (and how to simplify without dumbing down)
• How methane went from overlooked to a “climate moment”
• Why people need hope + solutions—not just data
• The surprising real reason An Inconvenient Truth resonated
• How TikTok, LinkedIn, and AI are changing the game
• Why even experts need communication training

Plus, Kalee shares her top 3 tips for becoming a better climate communicator—no matter your role.

If you work in or are passionate about climate, this episode is a must-listen.

Alexia Kelly interviews Dr. Lea Borkenhagen, SVP at Environmental Defense Fund, about her career spanning economics, NGOs and corporate sustainability. Dr. Borkenhagen traces her path from studying orangutans in Borneo to exploring how markets shape resource use, then working with WWF and earning a PhD before joining Oxfam to help launch the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil. They discuss Dr. Borkenhagen’s experience at Nike, and what it really takes to “win hearts and minds” as a sustainability professional.

Dr. Borkenhagen’s work at EDF focuses on sustainability as a driver of business value—and she shares her expert perspective on how emerging topics like CBAM, climate impacts on supply chains, innovation, methane action, and more are reasons for hope in corporate climate progress, despite political headwind.