The Climate Cycle

Hosted by Climate Tech Canada

TechnologyInterviews guests

Website RSS feed

Episodes

Latest episode

Aug 2026

Language

EN-CA

About the show

The companies remaking energy, food, and industry are being built right now. The Climate Cycle goes deep inside Canadian climate tech, talking to the founders, investors, and thinkers building the industries of tomorrow. Hosted by Justin Reist, founder of Climate Tech Canada.

Listen to episodes

48 recent

August 20, 2026Episode 4744 min

Voluntary to Mandatory: Building ESG's Trust Infrastructure with Charles Assaf, Novisto

The story in corporate sustainability right now is all about retreat: voluntary pledges walked back, advocacy groups shutting down, banks dropping emissions targets. But underneath that noise, mandatory disclosure rules in the EU and around the world are creating obligations no company can undo with a press release. That means ESG data needs to be as rigorous and auditable as financial reporting, and large companies are taking it seriously - even if they aren’t talking about it as loudly. We sat down with Charles Assaf , CEO of Novisto , a Montreal-based company that's raised $55M+ to turn scattered sustainability data into a single, audit-ready system of record. As disclosure regulation tightens globally, that infrastructure is becoming as essential to compliance teams as financial reporting systems are to finance teams. In our conversation we cover: What's actually happening in the field - beyond the ESG backlash headlines The shift from voluntary pledges to regulation-driven demand What the EU's CSRD actually requires and how Canadian companies get pulled in from the outside Why asset owners and pension funds haven't changed course, even as public pledges disappear What "audit-ready" data really means, and how ESG reporting is maturing the way financial reporting once did Building a global enterprise company from Montreal, and why AI raises the stakes on owning trusted data MORE Subscribe to our weekly newsletter⁠⁠⁠ for Canadian climate tech funding, news, and trends: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://climatetechcanada.ca/subscribe⁠⁠⁠⁠ Enjoying the show? Leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts! Feedback or guest ideas: hello @ climatetechcanada.ca

August 6, 2026Episode 4655 min

Turning Waste Heat into Energy Abundance with Local Energy

Up to 50% of industrial heat is wasted. For decades, cheap electricity meant nobody bothered capturing it. That's changing as industry looks for more power, better efficiency, and lower emissions. Local energy networks turn that waste into value, letting neighbouring facilities trade surplus heat instead of losing it. The obstacle isn't proving it works - it's getting industrial neighbours to coordinate. Léo Lamy-Laliberté and Daniel Bastien are co-founders of Local Energy (www.localenergy.ai), a Mila-backed startup that's accelerating projects and optimizing them for maximum efficiency. They're using machine learning to deliver better returns and unlock even more ambitious projects. What we cover: Why cheap electricity left industrial waste heat uncaptured for decades The coordination problem: why this is a governance gap, not a technology gap Local Energy's two tools: "Builder" to design a network, "Operator" to run it Modelling 32 million project parameters instead of using spreadsheets How Canada compares to Denmark and Germany, and what policy shift would close the gap The path from a handful of Canadian sites to ten thousand MORE Subscribe to our weekly newsletter⁠⁠⁠ for Canadian climate tech funding, news, and trends: ⁠⁠https://climatetechcanada.ca/subscribe⁠⁠ Enjoying the show? Leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts! Feedback or guest ideas: hello @ climatetechcanada.ca

July 23, 2026Episode 4525 min

An Insider's Look at Industrial Decarbonization with Dennis Wilson, Saint-Gobain North America

Canada's built environment accounts for roughly 40% of national emissions - and building materials, one of the least-discussed corners of climate tech, are where a lot of that carbon actually lives. In this episode, we look at the buyer side of the equation: how large, industrial customers that are producing building materials today approach low-carbon innovation. Dennis Wilson is VP of ESG and Managing Director of Circular Economy Solutions at Saint-Gobain North America , one of the world's oldest and largest building materials companies. Dennis sits on both sides of the innovation equation: he runs Saint-Gobain's internal decarbonization strategy and its external startup partnerships. In this conversation: How an ESG target turns into deployed capital Why circular solutions are on the top of Dennis' priority list What Saint-Gobain looks for before greenlighting a startup partnership Balancing pilots with the need for solutions at mass-scale What founders get wrong and why "we have a solution" isn't enough Where pilot-to-procurement relationships break down, and what separates the ones that survive It's an inside look at how industrial players think about integrating new solutions and decarbonizing at scale. MORE Subscribe to our weekly newsletter⁠⁠⁠ for Canadian climate tech funding, news, and trends: ⁠https://climatetechcanada.ca/subscribe⁠ Enjoying the show? Leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts! Feedback or guest ideas: hello @ climatetechcanada.ca

July 9, 2026Episode 441 hr 1 min

Is Climate Software Dead?

A generation of climate tech was built on assumptions that no longer hold up. AI primitives and cutting-edge models are commoditizing software, creating new questions around the future of climate software. We sit down with an investor and founder to unpack what the Saaspocalypse means for climate tech. Geordan Hankinson is a Partner at Renewal Funds , a Vancouver-based impact VC with a track record of climate software exits including Opus One Solutions (acquired by ABB). Mike Hejmej is the CEO of Senpilot , an AI-native platform for electric utilities. Geordan has backed and exited climate startups under the old software playbook, while Mike is building squarely inside the new one, betting that regulated, high-stakes deployment environments create a moat that a model alone can't replicate. What we cover: What the "SaaSpocalypse" actually means for climate software Why the old software playbook is hitting a ceiling Stress testing the idea that anyone can build production-ready software in hours or days How utility buyers are actually evaluating build-vs-buy right now Where moats still hold: physical infrastructure, regulated trust, and proprietary context A speculative new playbook for climate software founders building today MORE Show notes: https://climatetechcanada.ca/p/podcast-is-climate-software-dead⁠⁠⁠ Subscribe to our weekly newsletter⁠⁠⁠ for Canadian climate tech funding, news, and trends: https://climatetechcanada.ca/subscribe Enjoying the show? Leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts! Feedback or guest ideas: hello @ climatetechcanada.ca Cover art: Igor Omilaev on Unsplash

June 18, 2026Episode 4349 min

What It Takes to Make Carbon Pricing Stick in Canada with Clean Prosperity

Canada's industrial carbon pricing system just went through its biggest redesign since it launched, trading ambition for stability. Depending on who you ask, the deal is either a major unlock - or a major step backwards. We sat down with Etienne Rainville , VP for Central Canada at Clean Prosperity , a Canadian think tank that's been one of the most consistent voices for market-based climate policy. He's been making the case for carbon contracts for difference and was actively engaged as the Ottawa-Alberta negotiations unfolded. We unpack what the certainty-price trade-off really means, how it impacts investment decisions - and where climate policy goes from here. What we cover: Why the industrial carbon market was broken - and what the gap between the $95 headline price and $30 trading price actually means What changed: the new headline price schedule, the price floor, and how carbon contracts for difference work Why the floor alone isn't enough - and what CCfDs do that regulation can't What this means for founders and investors evaluating capital commitments Whether renegotiating the system undermines its long-term credibility How this deal impacts provinces beyond Alberta And where we go from here MORE ⁠⁠Subscribe to our weekly newsletter⁠⁠ for Canadian climate tech funding, news, and trends. Enjoying the show? Leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts! Feedback or guest ideas: hello @ climatetechcanada.ca

June 4, 2026Episode 4245 min

Accelerating Climate Innovation with Philanthropic Capital ft. Galith Levy, Climate Solutions Prize

Climate startups face a commercialization gap: They've proven the science, but are too risky for VCs - and too commercial for a government grant. It's a gap that philanthropic capital is well-positioned to close. Galith Levy is the CEO and co-founder of the Climate Solutions Prize , a dedicated philanthropic platform for climate innovation, deploying capital at the moment it matters most. Since 2020, they’ve deployed more than $12M in awards and unlocked over $120M in follow-on investment for winners. What we cover: Why a prize vs grants, funds, or donor-advised vehicles The unique gap that philanthropic capital can address How CSP structures the prizes to unlock follow-on investment Why climate makes up just <2% of climate philanthropy - and how that can change Family offices and the next-generation of climate capital Communication impact returns - not just financial ones What blended finance actually looks like in practice Building the "Davos for climate" MORE ⁠Subscribe to our weekly newsletter⁠ for Canadian climate tech funding, news, and trends. Enjoying the show? Leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts! Feedback or guest ideas: hello @ climatetechcanada.ca

May 14, 2026Episode 4154 min

Closing the Heat Pump Adoption Gap with Stephen Lake, Jetson

We know heat pumps work - they’ve been around for decades - but actually getting them into homes is a challenge. The gap is structural: high upfront costs, a buying process stuck in the 90s, and a supply chain stacking layers of margin between the manufacturer and your home. We talk with Stephen Lake , founder and CEO of Jetson , a home electrification company focused on making the transition to electric systems more affordable and sustainable. Jetson was started by the same team that built and sold North (formerly Thalmic Labs) to Google. They raised a $50M Series A earlier this year and are operating in Vancouver, Colorado and Massachusetts. Jetson is giving heat pumps the DTC treatment and vertically integrating the entire experience - from hardware to install -building a system that functions more like mass production than a typical HVAC company. What we cover: Why home heating is a bigger emissions lever than switching to an EV The structural barriers keeping heat pump adoption low - and Jetson’s thesis for closing the gap Jetson’s strategy for turning one-off installations into a repeatable process How Jetson thinks about entering new markets- The cold-climate and cost myths that are still slowing adoption What a fleet of connected homes means for the customer experience The grid integration play: demand response, time-of-use optimization, and what comes next MORE Subscribe to our weekly newsletter for Canadian climate tech funding, news, and trends. Enjoying the show? Leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts! Feedback or guest ideas: hello @ climatetechcanada.ca

April 30, 2026Episode 4035 min

Turning Toronto Into Canada's Climate Hub

Can Toronto become a global climate hub - and put Canada on the map? Becky Park-Romanovsky is a global leader in sustainability and climate action, with a track record of launching and scaling climate-focused initiatives across multiple continents. She founded Toronto Climate Week, co-founded Climate North, is a lecturer on Social Entrepreneurship at IE University in Madrid, and previously developed carbon offset projects across the Americas, Africa, Middle East, and Eastern Europe. TOCW is a decentralized platform - part convener, part infrastructure layer for Canada's climate ecosystem. Their October kickoff was planned as a single day with 20 events. Instead, it drew 100 events, 5,000 attendees, and representation from 30 countries - with zero international outreach. The full week runs June 1–7 with 200+ events across 16 tracks. We get into: Toronto's potential as a climate hub - where it's strong and who still needs to come to the table Why corporate climate action isn't slowing down even as public commitments disappear The strategy behind radical inclusion - arts, sports, culture Building the infrastructure to turn a week of conversations into measurable outcomes What Canada's climate ecosystem looks like if Toronto gets this right We're happy to be supporting TOCW in their inaugural year as a media partner. MORE Subscribe to our weekly briefing for the latest climate deals, events, policy shifts and more. Enjoying the show? Leave a review and help us grow! Questions or feedback: hello@climatetechcanada.ca

April 16, 2026Episode 3940 min

Turning Retired EV Batteries Into Domestic Energy Storage with Moment Energy

The battery storage market is growing - and the supply chain feeding it runs largely through overseas cell manufacturers. At the same time, the first wave of EV batteries is aging out of vehicles, with nowhere obvious to go. Moment Energy is building the infrastructure to address both problems at once, repurposing retired EV battery packs for commercial energy storage. Their platform takes battery cells that still hold around 80% of their original capacity and redeploys them as stationary battery energy storage. Unlike competitors sourcing cells from overseas, Moment's feedstock is already here: in EVs across Canada and the US. Sumreen Rattan is co-founder and COO of Moment Energy. The company closed a US$15M Series A from Amazon's Climate Pledge Fund and Voyager Ventures, secured a $20.3M DOE grant for a Texas gigafactory, and holds supply agreements with Nissan North America and Mercedes-Benz. What we cover: Moment’s second-life thesis - why a battery with 80% capacity remaining is too valuable to recycle Putting together supply partnerships with Nissan and Mercedes-Benz Data centres as a new customer category The domestic supply chain advantage as FEOC rules reshape North American procurement What's slowing energy storage deployment in Canada Building at gigafactory scale and solving the talent gap → Subscribe to our weekly newsletter for Canadian climate tech funding, news, and trends → Full show notes and resources → Enjoying the show? Leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts → Feedback or guest ideas: hello@climatetechcanada.ca

April 2, 2026Episode 3841 min

The Economic Case for Carbon Removal with Na'im Merchant

Canada's carbon removal sector punches well above its weight. We're home to leaders in direct air capture, mineral and ocean pathways and international companies are moving projects to Canada. The question is whether Canada will move ambitiously enough to capitalize before the window closes. Na'im Merchant is the Executive Director of Carbon Removal Canada , the country's leading CDR advocacy non-profit. In March 2026, his organization helped anchor the Advance Carbon Removal Coalition - a $100M commitment from the federal government, RBC, BMO, and Shopify to back Canadian projects by 2030. Carbon Removal Canada is the connective tissue the sector needed: a technology-agnostic, independent organization that coordinates policy, organizes the ecosystem, and builds the demand signals that help projects get financed. Their economic modelling shows CDR starts saving Canada money by 2035, cutting the marginal cost of reaching net zero by over 50% by 2050. What we cover: Why Na'im left global health for carbon removal What $100M actually unlocks - and why a government buyer matters The economic argument: how CDR saves Canada money on the path to net zero Industrial integration: mining, steel, and forestry as CDR opportunities Trough of disillusionment or normal maturation? The US pullback: genuine competitive opening for Canada, or missed opportunity? What policy and capital levers need to be pulled to realize this gigatonne-scale potential Links : → Subscribe to our weekly newsletter for Canadian climate tech funding, news, and trends → Full show notes and resources → Enjoying the show? Leave a review on Spotify or Apple Podcasts → Feedback or guest ideas: hello@climatetechcanada.ca