Having completed "The Impossible House" project, Robert Fortunato changed his career and switched from the corporate world of mergers and acquisitions to helping others tap into the green movement. He is now a green building advocate, an experienced practitioner, consultant, and educator.

This episode is a follow-on interview. Episode #230 documented his inspiring green home construction project. While he was told repeatedly why he could not pursue a fossil-free and healthy home, Robert was determined, got educated, convened smart collaborators, and "impossible" was transformed into reality. He burns no fossil fuels, his home is healthier, and his family is saving money every day.

Robert and Ted discuss the role of green building consultants, helping clients to plan carefully, and to tap into new technologies that make sense. Robert is an owner's rep; he who works on behalf of clients. Like Ted, he has worked with schools, businesses, and homeowners making sure they realize savings for their investments.

Robert stresses the need for consideration of green measures early in the design process. Things like relatively small investments in whole house surge protection can be readily incorporated, providing insurance for years to come. Robert and Ted talk about the merits of "doing it right" the first time: They discuss orientation for solar, recognizing varying levels of shading throughout the year and both its cooling benefits and solar power generation demerits.

The short and long-term benefits of solar and green measures are front and center in the conversation... providing dollar savings, healthier environments and comfort. Robert and Ted focus on lifecycle benefits - which can be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars - versus the upfront costs of measures which can be in the tens of thousands. Solar and efficiency, and electric vehicles and heat pumps, can save money over time... serving as viable annuities. Robert presents his own home savings, now well over $60,000... money that he and his wife put into their son's college education.

Robert describes the courses that he teaches for Southern California Edison. For the past ten years Robert has taught a course on building electrification, with invaluable lessons for architects, engineers, and lay people. They learn how to keep costs down while eliminating fossil fuels. A new course focuses on how to avoid costly panel upgrades through sophisticated controls and smart energy management, despite adding loads such as heat pumps and electric vehicles.

Georges Dyer is the Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Intentional Endowments Network (IEN), a non-profit, peer-learning network that helps endowed institutions make their endowments socially responsible. Of the 3,500 - 4,000 colleges and universities in America, some 2,000 have endowments that are valued at ~$900 billion in aggregate. These academic institutions -- as well as asset management firms, cultural institutions, museums, faith-based organizations, non-profit foundations, and others -- also have a similar value in retirement funds... which while highly regulated, are also being directed towards socially responsible and profitable investments.

Georges explains the genesis of IEN. Spurred by the president of Hampshire College, Jonathan Lash, IEN was originally formed to help institutions divest from fossil-fueled industries that were counter to their climate action plans. Student and faculty concerns really started to press on endowment portfolios in 2013. Today, IEN works with some 250 endowments. Ted asks the bottom line question early: How are these endowments performing? Are they losing money, or are they on par, or are they ahead? Georges explains that on balance, they are at par or better.

IEN provides a number of tools and resources for its members.. from virtual and in-person "convenings," to benchmarking tools, case studies, and more. The network provides insights and negative screening tools to weed out investments that run counter to an institution's mission and goals, while highlighting positive investment opportunities to reduce risk and steer institutions towards profitable investments in the green economy.

The conversation shifts to case studies of "platinum" members: Georges discusses leading institutions including the University of California system and Arizona State University. He discusses how some institutions have found means to invest in their own facilities... for instance solar projects and facility upgrades that make dollars and cents while addressing inequality and other social issues. Georges sites the Rockefeller Brothers Fund as a shining example. Born of oil and gas and fossil fuels, Rockefeller has been a leading example of an organization whose Standard Oil roots are now focused on "intentional investments" with highly positive performance.

For more on IEN and its mission and results, check out Georges' new podcast, "The Future of Finance."

Dr. Jason Huang is the co-founder and CEO of TS Conductors, a firm that manufacturers advanced conductors for electric utilities. The TS conductors, or transmission lines, carry up to three times as much power as conventional transmission lines (wires). They also cut power line losses by up to one half, often at a negative marginal cost... meaning they cost less than conventional lines and boost capacity. Jason explains that given today's thirst for power for data centers, building and mobility electrification, these conductors are critical in maintaining U.S. competitiveness in global markets, while providing critical services for renewable power generation.

Jason explains that the power sector is very conservative, working diligently to provide safe and reliable transmission services. Many utilities are using 120-year old transmission technology... while others are using "advances" that are 50+ years old. TS Conductors uses a combination of carbon fiber cores, which double their strength and weigh 80% less, with encapsulated aluminum conductors. Through TS Conductors, utilities can invest in the future... restringing power lines at lower costs and faster than using traditional technologies.

For years, utility transmission lines have been constrained by sagging in high heat and swaying in high winds. Many lines have to be derated in extreme heat events, times when utilities need the power the most. To add more capacity, utilities have had to make towers taller and to add towers. TS Conductors allows utilities to refurbish their transmission corridors and expand their power capacity without costly tower replacements. More important than the lower costs are avoiding permitting for new transmission corridors, processes that can take more than 12 years. In one case, TS Conductors were used in Montana, cutting CAPEX costs 40% and shortening the project schedule to provide means to bring wind farms' power to market by 12 months.

The conversation concludes with a look at the massive potential and market for advanced conductors. There are nearly a million circuit miles in America, and many more millions of conductor miles given three-phase configurations. And the conductors can be used for 18 million+ distribution lines as well. For the United States to be competitive in the global AI market, and to boost sustainability, TS Conductors offers a win-win solution.