Barbara Finamore | Energy, Pollution, & Why China’s Electric Vehicle Industry Might Just Save Our Planet

In this episode of The Negotiation, we talk with Barbara Finamore, author of “Will China Save the Planet?” and Founder and Senior Strategic Director, Asia, at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). Obviously this show was all about pollution in China but that’s where the obvious stops. We do take a walk down memory lane of how China got to where they are today, but we also discuss China massive investments in cleantech, wind power, solar power, and electric vehicles as well, all huge investments that dwarf the rest of the world, innovations that the rest of the world will likely and gladly adopt en mass as soon as possible. I ask Barbara’s opinion on local concern levels around pollution in China and whether those concerns change as we go up the demographic scale, and we talk about whether Chinese local citizens conflate or are able to separate conditions like smog from fog. We also discuss how informed and motivated the general populace is around hot topics such as pollution and climate change. Barbara has been squarely positioned at the center of the energy sector in China for 30 years and was a fascinating interviewee on these topics and more, most of which are front and center amongst foreigners when thinking about China. Enjoy!