RAW GREEN

Hosted by OBE Sustainability

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Oct 2026

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About the show

Raw, unfiltered chats about the tech, policy and money behind climate solutions. Hosts Francesco De Lieto (OBE Sustainability Managing Director) and Emma Mee (Chief of Staff, Colbridge Ventures) sit with founders, scientists, academics and investors on what works, what doesn’t, and what still needs inventing. With a touch of humour. Produced by OBE, a sustainability consultancy specialising in life‑cycle assessment, research and climate tech. More: • oneobe.com • youtube.com/@RAWGREEN_1 • linkedin.com/company/on‑behalf‑of‑earth Ciiiao!

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November 4, 2026Episode 6242 min

#62 - Powering Tropical Islands with Ocean Energy | Dan Grech

What if the ocean could generate electricity all day, every day? Dan Grech , founder and CEO of Global OTEC ( https://globalotec.co/ ), joins Francesco and Emma to explore a renewable energy technology that has been waiting more than 140 years for its moment. Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) uses the difference between warm surface water and cold deep ocean water to generate electricity. For tropical islands that depend heavily on imported fossil fuels, it could offer something particularly valuable: reliable, locally generated power. They get into the engineering behind ocean energy, why conventional renewables cannot solve every island's energy challenges, and how Global OTEC is developing modular power systems to make the technology commercially viable. From offshore storms, corrosion and environmental impacts to desalination, cooling and the growing energy demands of data centres, Dan explains both the opportunities and the obstacles involved in bringing an old idea into the modern energy market. They also discuss the difficult journey from a promising prototype to an investable infrastructure project, and why Dan believes proving the technology at commercial scale is more important than making ambitious promises. A fascinating conversation about ocean energy, energy independence, engineering and what it really takes to turn climate innovation into something that works. Don't forget to follow our podcast to catch the next episode. Raw Green is produced and sponsored by OBE, a sustainability consultancy specialised in Life Cycle Assessment, research and climate technologies. For more information: https://oneobe.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/on-behalf-of-earth/ https://www.youtube.com/@RAWGREEN_1 Suggestions or ideas for future episodes? Email us at info@oneobe.com Ciiiiao!

October 21, 202644 min

#61 - The 380 Exajoule Opportunity | Rushad Nanavatty

Energy efficiency offers savings and predictable returns, so why does climate-tech investment keep chasing new power generation? Recorded live at The Drop in Malmö (https://thedropconf.com/), Rushad Nanavatty , Managing Director at RMI (Rocky Mountain Institute - https://rmi.org/) and Third Derivative (https://www.third-derivative.org/), joins Francesco De Lieto and Emma Mee to explore the roughly 380 exajoules of primary energy that never become useful energy. From industrial heat pumps and grid flexibility to passive radiative cooling, we ask where the overlooked opportunities lie, and what makes these technologies bankable. Plus: financing first-of-a-kind projects, China’s clean-tech leadership, and why Rushad thinks climate repair will become a much bigger conversation. Don’t forget to follow our podcast to catch the next episode. Raw Green is produced and sponsored by OBE, a sustainability consultancy specialised in Life Cycle Assessment, research and climate technologies. For more information: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://oneobe.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/on-behalf-of-earth/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RAWGREEN_1⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Suggestions or ideas for future episodes?Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@oneobe.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Ciiiiao!

October 7, 20261 hr 4 min

#60 - Climate Without Preaching | Stuart Goldsmith

How do you talk about climate change without making people switch off? Comedian Stuart Goldsmith , host of The Comedian’s Comedian Podcast and creator of the touring climate comedy show Canary ( https://www.stuartgoldsmith.com/), joins Francesco and Emma for a conversation about comedy, climate and communication. They get into climate dread, guilt and the impossible purity test; why sustainability needs to move from “values” to “value” ; cancel culture, corporate gigs and greenwashing; and why stand-up comedians and climate-tech founders have surprisingly similar jobs: test, fail, adapt and try again. Then Stuart gets thrown into the world of climate tech - judging space-based solar, lab-grown meat, robots, engineered bacteria and sewage-to-jet-fuel on one simple question: will they save us or kill us? A funny, candid conversation about climate, technology, communication and why sometimes the best way to get people to listen is to stop preaching. Don’t forget to follow our podcast to catch the next episode. Raw Green is produced and sponsored by OBE, a sustainability consultancy specialised in Life Cycle Assessment, research and climate technologies. For more information: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://oneobe.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/on-behalf-of-earth/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RAWGREEN_1⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Suggestions or ideas for future episodes?Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@oneobe.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Ciiiiao!

September 23, 202655 min

#59 - Jet Fuel From Sewage: The Future of Sustainable Aviation Fuel? | James Hygate

Can sewage really become sustainable aviation fuel? Francesco De Lieto and Emma Mee speak with James Hygate, founder of Firefly (https://flyfirefly.uk/), about turning wastewater biosolids into jet fuel using hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) - and whether this new pathway can compete with HEFA, e-SAF and conventional Jet A-1. James explains why sewage could be such a valuable SAF feedstock, how Firefly’s process works, its relationship with wastewater companies, what happens to the bio-crude and biochar, and whether wet waste could ultimately provide enough fuel to make a meaningful dent in aviation emissions. We also get into SAF pricing, Book & Claim, regulatory dependence, cost parity and Firefly’s 15-year, 525,000-tonne offtake agreement with Wizz Air . And there’s James’s wider story: more than 20 years in low-carbon fuels, from building a biodiesel refinery in his parents’ garage to supplying the Royal Family, receiving a Royal Warrant and later an OBE for services to low-carbon fuels . We cover: Why SAF still makes up less than 1% of aviation fuel use HEFA, e-SAF and why some SAF pathways are much more expensive than others Why used cooking oil is becoming an increasingly constrained feedstock How hydrothermal liquefaction turns sewage biosolids into bio-crude Why wastewater could be such a valuable low-cost SAF feedstock Firefly’s model with water companies and wastewater treatment plants Book & Claim, mandates and how dependent SAF still is on regulation Firefly’s 15-year, 525,000-tonne offtake agreement with Wizz Air Whether wet waste could produce enough fuel to materially decarbonise aviation James’s 20+ year journey from Green Fuels to Firefly, the Royal Warrant and his OBE Don’t forget to follow our podcast to catch the next episode. Raw Green is produced and sponsored by OBE, a sustainability consultancy specialised in Life Cycle Assessment, research and climate technologies. For more information: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://oneobe.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/on-behalf-of-earth/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RAWGREEN_1⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Suggestions or ideas for future episodes?Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@oneobe.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Ciiiiao!

September 9, 202653 min

#58 - Renewables Are Winning. You Just Don’t Know It Yet | Bruce Douglas

Renewables are scaling faster, getting cheaper and increasingly becoming an energy-security play. So why does the public and political conversation still make them sound expensive, unreliable and risky? In this episode of Raw Green , Francesco De Lieto and Emma Mee speak with Bruce Douglas , CEO of the Global Renewables Alliance ( https://globalrenewablesalliance.org/ ), about the gap between what is happening in global energy markets and the story people are being told. We get into fossil-fuel misinformation, subsidies, electricity pricing, North Sea drilling and why Bruce believes the renewables sector is still badly outgunned when it comes to communications. But the conversation is also about what happens next: grids, storage, permitting, electrification, microgrids and the practical steps governments need to take to get close to 11,000 GW of renewable capacity by 2030 . We cover: Why renewables are still losing the argument Fossil-fuel subsidies and political messaging Why more drilling does not necessarily mean cheaper energy Grids, storage and the case for microgrids GRA’s Electrify Now campaign Nuclear and the future power mix The four things governments need to do now Where the best renewable-energy success stories are already happening Useful links: Global Renewables Alliance Electrify Now InfluenceMap – Fossil Fuel Misinformation Tracker Global Renewables Summit Don’t forget to follow our podcast to catch the next episode. Raw Green is produced and sponsored by OBE, a sustainability consultancy specialised in Life Cycle Assessment, research and climate technologies. For more information: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://oneobe.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/on-behalf-of-earth/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RAWGREEN_1⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Suggestions or ideas for future episodes?Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@oneobe.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Ciiiiao!

August 13, 202637 min

#57 - Can Small Wind Finally Take Off? | Daniel Farb

Small wind has been around for decades. So why has it never taken off like solar? In this episode of Raw Green , Francesco De Lieto and Emma Mee speak with Daniel Farb , CEO of Flower Turbines (https://www.flowerturbines.com/), about whether small vertical-axis wind can finally move from niche technology to serious distributed energy. Flower Turbines is trying to tackle many of the problems that have held small wind back: cost, noise, vibration, aesthetics, siting and poor economics. Its key innovation is the “bouquet effect”, where turbines installed close together can improve each other’s performance. But technology is only part of the story. Unlike solar, where generation forecasts can be built quickly from highly mature irradiance datasets, small wind still faces a harder problem: proving output with enough confidence to support a robust financial case without making project development prohibitively expensive. We cover: Why small wind has historically disappointed How commercial deployments are assessed Flower Turbines’ technology and bouquet effect The economics of clustered installations Selling electricity instead of turbines Manufacturing, China and IP UK vs US market dynamics What small wind still needs to compete with commercial solar Can small wind finally take off? Don’t forget to follow the podcast to catch the next episode. Raw Green is produced and sponsored by OBE, a sustainability consultancy specialised in Life Cycle Assessment, research and climate technologies. For more information: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://oneobe.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/on-behalf-of-earth/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RAWGREEN_1⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Suggestions or ideas for future episodes?Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@oneobe.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Ciiiiao!

July 29, 202640 min

#56 - Cooling Buildings Without More Air Conditioning | Molly Allington

When buildings overheat, the usual answer is simple: add more cooling. But what if part of the solution was not another machine, but a material? In this episode of Raw Green , Francesco De Lieto and Emma Mee speak with Molly Allington , CEO and co-founder of Albotherm (https://albotherm.com/), a Green Angel Ventures portfolio company developing heat-responsive coatings and films for glass. Albotherm’s technology is clear when it is cooler and turns white and reflective when temperatures rise, helping to reduce solar heat gain before air conditioning is needed. The company began by working on greenhouse coatings, where overheating can affect crops, workers and yields, and is now moving into retrofit window films for homes, offices, schools, public buildings and commercial spaces. The conversation covers passive cooling, building overheating, energy efficiency, climate adaptation, solar-control films, greenhouse trials, Part O overheating regulations, public health, product durability, environmental trade-offs, and the manufacturing challenges of scaling a materials start-up. If we want buildings to cope with hotter summers without simply increasing electricity demand, technologies like Albotherm may become part of the next wave of practical climate adaptation. Don’t forget to follow the podcast to catch the next episode. Raw Green is produced and sponsored by OBE, a sustainability consultancy specialised in Life Cycle Assessment, research and climate technologies. For more information: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://oneobe.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/on-behalf-of-earth/⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RAWGREEN_1⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Suggestions or ideas for future episodes?Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠info@oneobe.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Ciiiiao!

July 15, 202656 min

#55 - How climate tech earns serious capital | Bailey Morrow

How does climate tech earn serious capital? In this episode of RAW GREEN , Francesco De Lieto and Emma Mee sit down with Bailey Morrow, Managing Director at HSBC Innovation Banking (https://www.hsbcinnovationbanking.com/en), to unpack one of the biggest bottlenecks in climate tech: bankability. Many climate technologies can prove they work through pilots, LCA data, early customers and technical milestones. But proving that a technology works is not the same as proving it is financeable. Bailey explains what lenders actually look for when assessing climate tech companies, why debt moves differently from venture capital, and why founders often confuse being VC-fundable with being bank-financeable. The conversation covers the gap between technical validation and commercial maturity, the role of liquidity, customer contracts, offtake agreements, recurring revenue, and the importance of building lender relationships early. The episode also explores the differences between the US, UK, Europe and China when it comes to climate tech scale-up, risk appetite, speed of execution, regulation and deployment. From software-enabled climate tech to hardware, FOAK projects, project finance, venture debt and customer-side financing, this is a practical discussion on what it really takes for climate technologies to move from promising innovation to serious capital. If you are a climate tech founder, investor, lender, corporate buyer or anyone working on scaling clean technologies, this episode is a clear guide to how capital thinks , and what climate tech needs to prove before banks lean in. Don’t forget to follow the podcast to catch the next episode. Raw Green is produced and sponsored by OBE, a sustainability consultancy specialised in Life Cycle Assessment, research and climate technologies. For more information: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://oneobe.com/⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/on-behalf-of-earth/⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RAWGREEN_1⁠⁠⁠⁠ Suggestions or ideas for future episodes?Email us at ⁠⁠⁠⁠info@oneobe.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ Ciiiiao!

June 30, 202647 min

#54 - Can Rocks Remove CO₂? Enhanced Rock Weathering | Mat Meredith

In this episode of RAW GREEN, Francesco De Lieto and Emma Mee speak with Mat Meredith, Chief Technology Officer at UNDO (https://un-do.com/), about enhanced rock weathering, one of the most promising carbon removal pathways with real gigatonne potential. Enhanced rock weathering sounds almost too simple: take crushed silicate rock, spread it on land, let rain and soil chemistry do the work, and remove CO₂ from the atmosphere. But behind that simple idea sit some of the hardest questions in climate tech: how do you prove the carbon has actually been removed, how do you measure it across messy real-world soils, and how do you turn it into a credible carbon credit? Mat explains how ERW works in plain English, why different rocks such as basalt and wollastonite behave differently, what happens to the captured carbon over time, and why MRV (measurement, reporting and verification) is the key challenge for the sector. We also discuss UNDO’s work with farmers and landowners, the soil-health benefits of spreading crushed rock, the carbon footprint of quarrying and processing, the instability of the carbon credit market, and what needs to happen for ERW to become bankable and scalable. A conversation about rocks, rain, soil, carbon removal, climate finance, and whether enhanced rock weathering can become one of the major tools in the fight against climate change. Don’t forget to follow the podcast to catch the next episode. Raw Green is produced and sponsored by OBE, a sustainability consultancy specialised in Life Cycle Assessment, research and climate technologies. For more information: ⁠⁠⁠https://oneobe.com/⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/on-behalf-of-earth/⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RAWGREEN_1⁠⁠⁠ Suggestions or ideas for future episodes?Email us at ⁠⁠⁠info@oneobe.com⁠⁠⁠ Ciiiiao!

June 16, 202647 min

#53 - Plastic Foam, Biochar & the Fight to Replace Styrofoam | Elizabeth Lee

Plastic foam is everywhere. It protects our deliveries, insulates buildings, keeps food cold, cushions products, and makes modern logistics work. But materials like expanded polystyrene - better known as Styrofoam - are still largely fossil-based, difficult to recycle in practice, and often end up as long-lasting plastic waste. In this episode of RAW GREEN 🎤 🌵, Francesco De Lieto and Emma Mee speak with Liz Lee, founder and CEO of Carbon Cell, a UK climate tech company developing a plastic-free foam made with biochar and natural materials. We explore what plastic foam is made of, why EPS became so dominant, why it is so hard to dispose of properly, and whether biochar-based materials could offer a real alternative to fossil-based foams in packaging, insulation and construction. Liz explains how Carbon Cell’s material works, why biochar is more than just a soil amendment, what “carbon negative” really means, and why sustainable materials need to compete on performance, cost and scalability - not just environmental claims. We also discuss the wider shift away from fossil-based materials, the challenge of scaling climate tech hardware, fundraising for sustainable materials companies, regulation, supply chain resilience, and the future of plastic-free foam. Don’t forget to follow the podcast to catch the next episode. Raw Green is produced and sponsored by OBE, a sustainability consultancy specialised in Life Cycle Assessment, research and climate technologies. For more information: ⁠⁠https://oneobe.com/⁠ ⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/on-behalf-of-earth/⁠ ⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@RAWGREEN_1⁠⁠ Suggestions or ideas for future episodes?Email us at ⁠⁠info@oneobe.com⁠⁠ Ciiiiao!