Climate One
Climate One
Climate One from The Commonwealth Club
New Nuclear, Old Challenges. What Now?
1 hour 2 minutes Posted Sep 11, 2026 at 7:15 am.
– Introduction 
– Manish Bapna explains shift in posture on nuclear power
– Why permitting and transmission reforms are necessary
– Ed Lyman and Josh Freed share concerns about climate change but differ on the role of nuclear energy
– Ongoing risks of nuclear energy
– Supply chain concerns
– Discussion of radioactive waste handling
– Role of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and its independence under the current administration
– Where nuclear fits into carbon-free future
– Denia Djokić on how new advanced designs differ from older reactor designs
– SMRs are not plug-and-play 
– New nuclear can’t meet the speed demands of AI 
– Additional considerations around nuclear energy
– Climate One More Thing
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Show notes
Growing power demands – coupled with increasingly frequent climate-driven disasters – have led even staunch environmentalists like NRDC head Manish Bapna to rethink their past opposition to nuclear power. 
Three Mile Island didn't kill anyone or cause major public harm, but it fundamentally changed U.S. nuclear policy for 40 years. Why did an accident with a relatively contained consequence have such a chilling effect – and what’s really different today? With dozens of new, purportedly safer designs at various stages of development and construction around the world, is it time for all of us to give nuclear energy a fresh look?
Guests:
Manish Bapna, President and CEO, NRDC 
Denia Djokić, Assistant Research Scientist, University of Michigan
Josh Freed, Senior Vice President for Climate and Energy, Third Way
Edwin Lyman, Director of Nuclear Power Safety, Union of Concerned Scientists 
Highlights:
For show notes, related links, and episode transcript, visit our episode page at ClimateOne.org
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