203. Tomfoolery! Red Herrings!

Welcome to another episode of Outrage + Optimism, where we examine issues at the forefront of the climate crisis, interview change-makers, and transform our anger into productive dialogue about building a sustainable future. With anti-ESG action hitting the headlines across the ‘puddle’ (as Christiana would say), our hosts begin this week by walking us through the origins of the anti-ESG movement which we covered in our Season 6 episode: ESG: Facts are not Political, before moving us on to explore the current spate of legal cases being brought by certain Republican groups, designed to intimidate members of net zero alliances. We were very fortunate to speak to Maurits Dolmans, attorney and partner of Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP, and a rising star of the Net Zero Lawyers Alliance, who helped us understand the baseless allegations and coordinated propaganda employed by Republican groups (such as Consumers’ Research and the State Financial Officers Foundation) to delay and obfuscate meaningful climate action, while putting voters’ pensions, investments and livelihoods at risk. Expect high octane outrage from this episode!  Relief in the form of our talented musical number comes this week from Constant Follower and their track “The Merry Dancers on TV”.  Check out their links below. Also, don't forget we’re hosting a live Q+A session on Monday 12 June with Paul, Fiona, Dylan, Tom and Christiana to cover all those burning questions unearthed by the Lifelines vs Deadlines mini-series. Details about how to register your place can be found here. Please don’t forget to let us know what you think here, and / or by contacting us on our social media channels or via the website. NOTES AND RESOURCES Don’t miss our LIVE Online Podcast Recording & Q+A on Monday, June 12, 2023. Click the link to register and save your spot! Letter from 23 Attorney Generals to the Net Zero Insurers Allianz that Paul mentioned in the episode.   Maurits Dolmans LinkedIn | Blog Co-Authord by Maurits Constant Follower Instagram | Linktr.ee | McAll’s Story Check out UK-based Charity - Help Musicians