Outrage + Optimism: The Climate Podcast12 Nov 2025

Inside COP: Is The US Still In? And Gavin Newsom on ‘invasive species’ Trump

Day three of COP30, and there’s one elephant not in the room.

While there are plenty of United States citizens at this COP, for the first time, there are no US delegates. Christiana Figueres, Tom Rivett-Carnac and Fiona McRaith consider this notable absence, and ask: can a country that keeps flipping between progress and denial still claim climate leadership?

In a conversation recorded live in the Blue Zone for America Is All In, Christiana sits down with California’s Governor Gavin Newsom, who delivers a fiery defence of his state’s climate leadership and a warning about what’s at stake for democracy itself. But with reports swirling that Donald Trump may soon greenlight new drilling off California’s coast, how does he respond?

Meanwhile, behind the scenes, the team untangles the latest intrigue over who will host COP31 - with Australia, Turkey and even Germany now in the mix - and a rather surreal rumour involving Turkey’s First Lady.

And just after the mics were packed away, protests erupted outside and inside the COP30 venue. Christiana shares her reflections on what this moment means for the summit.

Learn more:

📰 Read the latest reports that Trump is planning to allow oil and gas drilling off the California coast

📣 Find out more about the protests at the COP30 venue

🌍 Check out the official COP30 website for background and announcements

🎤 What do you want to hear on Inside COP? Ask us on SpeakPipe or on our socials where you can also see more behind the scenes moments and to watch our videos:

Instagram @outrageoptimism

LinkedIn @outrageoptimism

Or via this form.

Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Edited by: Miles Martignoni

Video Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan

Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford

With thanks to Groundswell and Global Optimism.

This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(394)

273. COP29 Live: Bigger, Better, Bolder. Updating NDCs in Line with 1.5C

Recorded live from COP29 in the UK Pavilion in Baku, Bigger, Better, Bolder: Updating NDCs in Line with 1.5 Degrees captures an energetic dialogue on the crucial role of bold leadership in climate act...

14 Nov 202447min

272. COP29 Live: From Call to Action with Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley and UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy

Recorded Live at the UK COP Pavilion and moderated by Tom, ‘From Call to Action: the Bridgetown Initiative and delivering Global Financial System Reform’ is an inspiring conversation between Barbados ...

12 Nov 202446min

271. Getting Nature on the Balance Sheet

This week, Paul and Tom are joined by Tony Goldner, from the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures. Tony helps make sense of what happened at the recent Biodiversity COP in Colombia and di...

12 Nov 202420min

270. What Does This Trump Presidency Mean for Climate?

As the news of Donald Trump’s 2024 US election victory makes headlines around the world, Christiana Figueres, Tom Rivett-Carnac and Paul Dickinson unpack Trump and Harris’s campaign and discuss the im...

7 Nov 202458min

269. COP16: Making Peace with Nature?

This week, Christiana has a fascinating window into the Biodiversity COP negotiations underway in Colombia. From Cali, she’s joined by Freya Newman and Irene Suarez Perez from the Global Optimism team...

31 Okt 202444min

268. Rewilding The World with Ben Goldsmith and Stephen Fry

This week, as part of our focus on biodiversity during COP 16, we're excited to share a special crossover episode! In the first part of this exciting episode, join Christiana, Tom, and Ben Goldsmith f...

24 Okt 202455min

267. The Rio Trio: A Cocktail of COPs

This week, our hosts dive into The Rio Trio! No, this is not the name of a new cocktail but three COPs (Biodiversity in Colombia, Climate in Azerbaijan and Desertification in Saudi Arabia) which are a...

17 Okt 202445min

266. Is it OK to Have Children in a Climate Crisis?

In the final episode of our How to Live a Good Life series, Tom, Paul and Christiana discuss the personal quandary of whether or not to have children in the midst of what appears to be significant cli...

15 Okt 202455min