Author: The Kernel & Madison Schroder We’ve been getting a bunch of comments on our TikTok lately asking about careers in the nuclear energy industry. The timing couldn’t be better – according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s latest Pathways to Commercial Liftoff report, the US will need 700 to 900 gigawatts of additional clean firm power to

A reflection on the final hours of COP climate negotiations Author: The Kernel & Vladislav I open my eyes in that giant bowl of steel and concrete that pretends to be a hall but really is an Olympic stadium in disguise, its curves hidden behind white panels and makeshift halls, as if we’ve collectively agreed

Author: The Kernel & Vladislav Last week, an article circulated in ECO—the daily newsletter published by the Climate Action Network (CAN) at COP29—warning of a “nuclear stampede” threatening climate finance. For those unfamiliar, CAN is a global network of over 1,500 environmental NGOs working to promote government and individual action to address climate change. While

How National Climate Plans Lost Touch with Reality Author: The Kernel, Gayatri Karnik and Eric G. Meyer In 2015, world leaders created the Paris Agreement to coordinate global climate action, requiring nations to submit detailed climate strategies to the United Nations. These take two forms: Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), updated every five years to outline

Author: The Kernel, and Charlie Maitland  Even in a room full of experts dedicated to the idea that nuclear should lead our clean energy future, there are plenty of conflicting opinions on how it could happen. “No Fuel, No Party” inspired by the old “no martini, no party” TV ad with George Clooney, was a

Author: The Kernel, and Vladislav Introduction As the climate crisis escalates, the need to mobilize substantial financial resources for mitigation and adaptation becomes increasingly urgent. The New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) on climate finance, established under the UNFCCC framework, aims to support developing countries by mobilizing funds starting from a floor of USD 100 billion

Author: The Kernel, and Eric G. Meyer When Four Corners reached out for their nuclear energy episode, I was thrilled. Here was a chance to share insights about nuclear power’s role in our clean energy future with the oft-nuclear skeptical Australian audience. I was also a bit confused. Why weren’t they talking to the vanguard of pro-nuclear

Author: The Kernel, and Mary Kloser Have you heard about the banana challenge? You may have seen a few videos of this challenge on our social media. So, why are we doing this? We’ve teamed up with Mothers for Nuclear and Constellation Energy for the #ComeClean campaign. Our mission? To get people talking about nuclear energy with their friends and family in

Author: The Kernel, and Kiersten Sundell Here’s a riddle for you: what emits boatloads of carbon, destroys forests ecosystems, and is still called renewable energy? Did you guess it? We’re talking about the world’s first ever human energy source – biomass. Biomass energy is produced when we burn natural material like trees and brush, garbage,

Author: The Kernel, and Kiersten Sundell Sources are saying that the world is preparing to fight climate change with nuclear as a clean baseload power source. New reactor builds have begun popping up all over the globe as 25 countries pledged to triple global nuclear capacity by 2050. The only problem with all of this? We

Author: The Kernel & Kiersten Sundell If you care about renewables, or California, or saving money on electricity, you’re gonna wanna hear this. People who have rooftop solar panels often generate more electricity than they can use, and net metering allows them to send it onto the grid for others, and get credits in exchange. When the

Author: The Kernel & Kiersten Sundell The traditional approach to siting nuclear waste repositories has often been top-down – decisions about community land are made by governmental authorities or technical experts, without considering the socioeconomic, cultural, and ecological concerns of the host community. These decisions have resulted in opposition and mistrust, and have been at

Author: THE KERNEL & Kiersten Sundell When nuclear fuel is done pumping out clean power for 5 straight years in a reactor, it chills in a cooling pool for another 5 years before being moved to dry cask storage at a spent fuel pad. One question we get asked a lot is: are those safe from…attacks?