You may have read the news stories: in 2025 renewables ⚡️🌞 overtook coal as the world's #1 energy source, for the first time ever. This is clearly good news, but how good? 🤨 And why is it happening and what does it mean for the future of climate and life on our home planet? 🌏If anyone knows, it's probably Bill McKibben. As co-founder of 350.org, founder of Third Act, creator of Sun Day and author of over a dozen books on climate and the environment including his latest, Here Comes the Sun, Bill is the Godfather of the modern movement and I was lucky to catch up with him to talk about:⚡️ The rapid shift to renewables and why it's happening🌏 The impact it's having, on the environment, people and global power politics😮 What it takes to start a movement as successful as 350.org 👏 Why you should really consider joining something existing rather than start something new⛷️ How he stays positive while working for 50 years at the forefront of the climate movementIt's a super-special episode because there are not many Bill McKibben's in the world and because it's the tenth episode of Goodtrepreneur. 🎉Huuuge thanks for your time, Bill McKibben and I hope you all enjoy the conversation as much as I did. We gave AI a listen and here's what it said...Smoke, floods and heat waves aren’t warnings anymore; they’re the weather. We invited Bill McKibben to help make sense of the moment we’re in and why the energy story has flipped. When solar and wind undercut coal, oil and gas on cost, the force of economic gravity shifts. That simple fact can cut emissions, clean the air that kills millions, and loosen the grip of resource politics that has shaped wars and regimes for a century.Bill takes us inside the numbers that matter: the remaining safe carbon budget, the fossil reserves still on corporate books, and the hard truth that plans to burn it all end the story in a hostile climate. From there, we dive into pace and proof. China is installing roughly three gigawatts of renewables daily, reshaping global industry and making mega-cities noticeably quieter. Australia shows how fast rooftops can change the grid from the bottom up. We unpack land use myths, from wind’s minimal footprint to agrovoltaics where shade boosts yields and resilience. The throughline: clean tech isn’t just cleaner, it’s better. EVs are simpler machines, easier to maintain, and far more efficient at turning energy into motion.None of this erases the need for justice. Communities built around mines and wells deserve real options. We talk retraining oilfield workers into wind technicians, funding pensions, and building local supply chains that keep value in-region. We also get practical about movement strategy, from 350.org’s global actions to Third Act’s elder power and the “Sundays” mobilisation that turns optimism into a public ritual. If you’re wondering where to start, Bill’s advice is clear: don’t act alone. Join local groups, back parties willing to move fast, and consider hands-on careers—especially becoming an electrician—as the world rewires.Ready to trade smoke for sunshine? Follow, share and leave a review so more people can find the show—then tell us what you’ll electrify first.Goodtrepreneur is the podcast about good people with good ideas for a better world. Please 👀 follow, 👂listen, 🌟 rate and share 📢 to help spread the word and deliver on our mission to inspire and enable more people to create more world changing ideas - and succeed - more often. Learn more at goodtrepreneur.co

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