“You see corporate procurement of clean energy, predominantly renewable energy, but there’s fleet investments, there are efficiency improvements in buildings and on campuses underway….but it was a little different than what we’d seen in recent years. It wasn’t just solar and wind. There was an interest in 24/7 reliable clean energy in particular by the tech industries, which won’t surprise you, but things like nuclear, geothermal, other integrated technologies like solar and storage…So that’s kind of an interesting set of dynamics because it’s really diversifying the players in the corporate for procurement space” Lisa Jacobson on Electric Ladies Podcast
With the war Trump started in Iran causing gas prices to soar, we wanted to understand where the energy sector really is today, despite economic and geopolitical pressures. Luckily, the new 2026 Energy Factbook just came out with the answers.
Listen to Lisa Jacobson, President of the Business Council for Sustainable Energy (BCSE) talk about the findings in the new energy report they did with Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) again in this fascinating discussion with Electric Ladies host Joan Michelson.
You’ll hear about:
- How AI is affecting energy markets and sources — beyond just data centers.
- How the energy supply chain is at risk, not just the energy sources themselves.
- How reliable the grid is today and what’s being done to strengthen it, including increasing transmission, efficiency, and resiliency in the face of $800 billion in climate events last year.
- Why she said AI is “inertia breaking” in a good way, forcing breakthroughs that are long overdue.
- Plus, insightful career advice, such as…
“Reach out, reach out, reach out…We’re an expanding sector and so much new Innovation, new Technology, new focus on us…it’s a good time to be in the energy sector …So I think a lot of it’s still Relationships and putting yourself out there. I think that is key. And certainly I would say to anybody who’s listening, don’t hesitate to reach out to me.… (and) Be generous with your time.” Lisa Jacobson on Electric Ladies Podcast
Read Joan’s Forbes article about this new report here and more of her articles here too.
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Joan Michelson, MBA is a highly accomplished business leader and award-winning strategic social impact and ESG – environment, social, governance – leader, who drove breakthrough results at Chrysler (in EVs), American Express and Deloitte, small businesses, and government agencies. She is an instructor on ESG issues to professionals, leaders and board members across industries. Her specialties include leveraging ESG solutions and partnerships strategically for maximum benefit, helping organizations recruit innovative, diverse women, and helping these women thrive in their careers. She is based in the Washington D.C. area.
Joan is also an accomplished journalist who has worked with top media organizations and hosts and produces the acclaimed Electric Ladies podcast (formerly known as Green Connections Radio), about innovation and leadership in energy-, climate- and sustainability-related issues across industries, featuring women experts.
She writes regularly for Forbes on these issues and has also been in the Harvard Business Review, HuffPost, TheAtlantic.com, Greenbiz, The New Economy magazine (distributed at the World Economic Forum), New Thinking magazine, regional business journals; and various other media. She coproduced segments with CBS News’ “60 Minutes,” ABC News, and “The Crusaders,” and television specials on NBC.
Joan has spent her career working in energy-sustainability-climate-ESG issues and in marketing communications, including as head of communications and co-leader of the sales and marketing team of Chrysler’s Global Electric Motorcars (GEM), driving “best year ever” growth and significantly accelerated the adoption of electric vehicles. Prior to GEM, she led marketing communications efforts to high-net-worth and high-visibility clients in management consulting-financial services companies Deloitte and American Express. She's a native of NYC and has a BA from UCLA, an MBA from Baruch College at City University of NY, and post-graduate studies at Harvard Business School, The New School and The Aspen Institute, among others. She has a Sustainability and ESG certification from Competent Boards.
