Renewable energy thought leadership has been essential to our transition away from fossil fuels over the past decade.
Through timely media coverage and viral social media debates, executives have inspired greener practices, attracted investment, and built stronger employer brands.
Yet, one powerful medium remains surprisingly underutilised. Podcasts. The most direct channel to reach your audience.
In this article, we explore how transformative podcasts can be while highlighting the best shows to consider pitching for your thought leadership campaign.
The first podcast on this list is Cleaning Up: Leadership in an Age of Climate Change.
This show focuses on a unique guest and their ideas, allowing renewable energy thought leaders to dive deep into a specific issue and turn listeners into brand ambassadors.
Typically, its hosts, Michael Liebreich and Bryony Worthington, will begin by asking their guests to run through their experience and ambitions to spark the conversation.
Take this opportunity to highlight your points of difference, such as the innovative technologies you might be developing or the positive impact of a recent campaign to hook your listeners.
In the past, guests have ranged from C-suite executives to journalists and academics, where topics for discussion have varied widely over the course of an hour.
The role of psychology to drive climate action.
What recent elections will mean for the green industries.
The secrets the energy industry doesn’t want you to know.
As you can see, the show specialises in delving into very niche subject areas and global issues, meaning that any pitch to the podcast must be specific, timely, and well-researched rather than overly promotional.
Given that the podcast is rated 4.7 out of 5 stars, it's highly regarded among its audience and a no-brainer for renewable energy thought leaders.
Climate One is another high-quality podcast that renewable energy thought leaders can’t miss.
Truly global in scope, this podcast analyses the crises and success stories shaped by climate change, where its guests add colour to the conversation of its hosts, Greg Dalton and Ariana Brocious.
It’s also worth noting that the podcast is run by the Commonwealth Club World Affairs of California, the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum, giving it a huge stamp of credibility.
How it deviates from other podcasts is where it veers into political, social, and economic debate, as well as sustainability. This makes it ideal for a wide range of global leaders looking to set themselves apart.
For instance, one of the podcast’s recent episodes covered China’s progress in renewable energy while exploring how we should balance competition with global climate goals.
The guests for the show included an international news correspondent, a climate change professor, and an economics professor to bring a well-rounded analysis.
These are types of stories you must keep an eye on, and pitch a unique and interesting perspective to secure a guest slot.
Factor This is specifically produced for renewable energy professionals across the solar industry, with much of its episodes focusing on stories linked directly to the US.
Recent episodes have varied across a range of topics.
Recent supply chain hurdles.
The impact of the Trump election.
Damage caused by Hurricane Helene.
However, unlike other podcasts, Factor This runs for just 20 minutes per episode. This means that if you want to pitch yourself you must bear brevity in mind.
Pitches need to be punchy and, more importantly, flexible with various talking points offered since the show’s producers will usually have their weekly topics in mind.
The show also has a “Cleantecher of the Week” segment, which highlights the good that executives, companies, and ordinary people are doing to make our planet eco-friendlier.
This is the perfect segment to highlight the success of a recent corporate campaign backed by research. It's also ideal to spotlight a charity that you might represent.
Because the podcast is owned by Renewable Energy World, it’s also worthwhile to pitch an opinion article to secure additional coverage.
These articles give you the freedom to explore a specific issue that you're passionate about in detail and share your perspectives. When well written, they'll rank highly on Google for a search of the relevant topic.
Besides this, there are numerous events that the publication partners with, including Distributech International, Powergen International, and GridTech Connect Forum. These are great opportunities for audiences to put a face to your name.
Redefining Energy is an award-winning podcast with over 250,000 downloads. It explores how tech, finance, markets, and regulations are radically redefining the world of energy.
The podcast takes a relaxed, conversational tone, and sets out to be interesting, informative, and easily accessible for its wide audience. Moreover, it puts an emphasis on profiling innovative businesses rather than strictly focusing on industry trends.
Episodes last up to an hour, with 2 episodes released each month, making the show fairly competitive to secure a slot on. Again, this underscores why all pitches must be well researched and written.
For founders of a renewable energy start-up who are looking to secure funding, this podcast is the perfect opportunity to generate publicity.
Moreover, it is co-hosted by Gerard Reaid and Laurent Segalen, both prominent figures in the energy sector, which can help position you as a leading renewable energy thought leader through association.
The Green Blueprint is hosted by Lara Pierpoint. It celebrates the founders, investors, policymakers, and organisational leaders who help make green tech possible.
Rather than solely speaking about problems, its guests contribute with technical advice and solutions to better the most prominent environmental issues we face.
The podcast tends to take an unconventional approach to sustainability compared to others by featuring guests across AI, manufacturing, and consumer tech, which opens the door to a wide range of voices.
Although renewable energy thought leadership often lends to better recruitment, the appeasement of pressure groups, and adherence to regulators, always back up your statements with action to avoid being accused of greenwashing.
Given that the podcast is produced by Latitude Media who regularly cover the most up-to-date industry research, appointments, and M&A activity, you should also consider pitching corporate press releases for additional value.
The podcasts covered in this list are just a few that renewable energy thought leaders should consider pitching.
But whatever the case, here are some additional tips to consider to improve your odds of securing a guest slot.
When pitching, always include a recording of yourself speaking. This demonstrates that you'll be an entertaining guest and, more importantly, genuine.
Prepare and stick to four or five talking points you want to hammer home. Keeping things simple will strengthen your arguments and prevent your conversation from going astray.
If the podcast producer doesn’t, plan a pre-recording meeting. This is so you can get to know the hosts better, test your recording equipment, and iron out any other hiccups.
Maximise your recording's value. The initial release of your episode is all well and good, but you need to share it on your social pages, websites, and blogs to maximise engagement.
For more advice about sustainability thought leadership, read here.