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As of July 16, Cipher has concluded its publication of new content after nearly four years of delivering clear, solutions-focused journalism on climate and energy. For the remainder of 2025, all existing Cipher content will remain accessible for readers and available to republish for free with attribution. To follow Cipher's journalists in their next chapters, click here.

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An illustration of a portrait of a woman with short blonde hair surrounded by drawings of solar panels, wind turbines, a clock, trees, an American flag and a pendulum. — With time, a swinging pendulum shapes energy and climate change
The time horizon of addressing climate change and transitioning our massive energy system to cleaner resources is spectacularly mismatched for humanity and its societal pendulum swings. Harder Line
Amy Harder 5 min read

An illustration that has six black and white portraits of six people. Background behind those portraits is a deep blue. — The Cipher team reflects on the last four years — and looks ahead
Cipher News has covered the global energy transition with an eye on the possible and a clear-eyed perspective. Latest News
Cipher Staff 7 min read

Schoolchildren shade their eyes from the strong sunlight as they watch the solar panels hoisted to the roof of their community school in Nar in Northern Pakistan. Photo by Amena H. Saiyid — Solar power is everywhere in Pakistan—here’s what that looks like
To say solar power is booming in Pakistan is an understatement. On a recent trip to my native country, I was overwhelmed by the omnipresence of solar energy in nearly every corner. Latest News
Amena H. Saiyid 6 min read

An illustration that has a wind turbine in the center and a shadowy figure pointing to a phone off to the left, with a social media thumbs down icon above the figure and shadowy protestors to the right of the wind turbine. The background is a dark-ish blue color. — Fake news causes headaches for Europe’s wind industry
False narratives around the impact of wind energy have morphed from small-scale opposition to globally coordinated campaigns targeting the technology as a whole. Latest News
Anca Gurzu 4 min read

How United Nations climate conferences work

In partnership with Encyclopædia Britannica, Cipher will be publishing occasional articles offering background and context on important climate programs, technologies and leaders. This article is the first in the series. Explainers

Anca Gurzu 6 min read

An illustration that has a globe in one corner, multicolor puzzle pieces in another, a document with a blue ribbon on another corner, and people talking around a table in the other corner.

A reporter tracks climate impacts and solutions in Chile

A journey through Chile is a journey into the energy transition. Reporter's Notebook

Bill Spindle 3 min read

A man in a white windbreaker and a hat and sunglasses, with a large telephoto lensed camera at his side, stands in front of a bright blue lake with a big grey mountain in the background.

On Chile’s coast, a rare earths mining operation seeks to uplift locals and counter China

A mining company backed by a traditional steelmaker takes a shot at mining rare earth elements along the Chilean coast. Latest News

Bill Spindle & Patricia Garip 5 min read

A photo of a rocky coastline, with trees and grasses in the foreground then water and a strip of land off in the distance. The sky is blue and a little bit hazy.

Miles high in the Andes, a lot depends on this lithium partnership

Chile has a lot to offer the world in terms of critical minerals for the energy transition. Getting those minerals out of the ground is neither simple or without cost. Latest News

Bill Spindle & Patricia Garip 6 min read

A photograph of a lake with bright blue, almost green, water, and a rocky red and dark gray mountain behind it.

More companies moving to adopt decarbonization targets

More companies are adopting targets for reduced carbon emissions, but increasingly without detailed plans to achieve them. Data Dives

Bill Spindle 2 min read

Two blue line charts on a blue background with no labels

How to improve life for humanity — and not worsen global warming

Access to reliable energy dramatically improves the quality of people’s lives. And the world needs a lot more energy to bring billions of people out of poverty. Explainers

Cat Clifford 4 min read

An illustration with dots coming out from a globe.

As coal plants shut in Romania, some miners transition to green energy while others are reluctant

Miners are witnessing the slow and steady decline of a decades-old industry as Romania prepares to phase out coal. However, not many have taken the leap to equip themselves with new skills. Latest News

Anca Gurzu 6 min read

Photo of a coal plant in the distance, with tree tops in the foreground and low mountains in the background.

In Wisconsin, I saw how the global energy transition is a local challenge

Cat Clifford shares what she learned while having tricky conversations about clean energy in Wisconsin ahead of the 2024 election. Reporter's Notebook

Cat Clifford 3 min read

Illustration for the Wisconsin Reporter's Notebook

Here’s how cleantech stacks up in three swing states

We take stock of cleantech and the election in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Latest News

Cipher Staff 5 min read

An illustration of the states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania above a ballot box where a hand is submitting a green leaf.

How innovation, coordination and compassion can help us tackle climate change

We drive economic growth without disrupting complex human and environmental systems by focusing on three key goals. Voices

Robert Murphy 3 min read

Illustration of two sets of hands holding up a globe.

To save the climate, let’s consider making food without farms

The newest synthetic food companies aren’t making novel compounds — they’re making the same molecules we relish eating now, but with drastically lower impacts to the climate and environment. Voices

Steven J. Davis & Ian McKay 4 min read

An illustration of a cow in a field in the background and a hand holding a plate of butter in the foreground.

Nuclear energy could undergo a renaissance. Here’s what to know.

So much innovation is happening in the nuclear industry right now. There is fresh optimism about new ways nuclear power can help decarbonize global economies. And, at the same time, the nuclear industry must show it is up to the challenge. Explainers

Cat Clifford 11 min read

Renewed interest in nuclear energy bolsters uranium prices

The price per pound of uranium has more than tripled over the past four years as interest in nuclear power has grown. Data Dives

Cat Clifford 2 min read

An illustration of a line chart with coins stacked up underneath it.

Surging power demand fuels new nuclear interest, federal funding

The exploding global demand for energy, combined with the urgent race to reduce carbon emissions, is focusing interest and investment on the once-staid, long-stagnant nuclear industry. Latest News

Cat Clifford 5 min read

An illustration with a blue background showing a renaissance statue and two types of nuclear reactors.

How to understand new nuclear energy

The nuclear industry is attempting to reinvent itself. To meet growing demand for clean, always-on energy, companies and governments are developing innovative nuclear plants that come in smaller sizes and use more advanced, and potentially safer, technologies. Explainers

Cat Clifford 6 min read

A hand from above reaches down and selects the medium size of three cups; there is also one small and one large, and they all have a nuclear power symbol on them.

Singapore seeks leading role in clean energy

Southeast Asia doesn't have a regional capital to act as organizer and promoter of its clean energy efforts. Singapore is trying to step into that role. Latest News

Bill Spindle 4 min read

Singapore's skyline at sunset, dotted by spectacular tall buildings.

We have to talk like humans to build demand for climate solutions

Three principles for how to communicate about climate solutions in a way that resonates with people and leads to significant increases in public support. Voices

John Marshall 2 min read

Illustration showing two silhouettes talking to one another with a green and a red speech bubble coming out of each head, one with wind turbines and the other with a nuclear plant drawn on it.

Elections highlight the missing energy transition narrative

To effectively address climate change, governments need to both enact the right laws and ensure their populations support those laws, so they stick around long enough to make a dent in our planet’s warming. Latest News

Anca Gurzu 5 min read

Illustration of people gathered around a table from above, table is green and holds little objects like a euro symbol made of coins, mini cows, a toy car, a toy tractor, and a small wind turbine. The hands around the table are all pointing at different objects.

Full U.S. energy loan chief interview: utilities, hydrogen and more

Jigar Shah, head of the U.S. Energy Department’s Loan Programs Office, shares his thoughts on disrupting the power sector, hydrogen production and transportation and more. Latest News

Cat Clifford 8 min read

An photo collage including a picture of Jigar Shah, head of the DOE's Loan Programs Office, a government building, and solar panels.

U.S. energy loan chief wants “culture and norms” disrupted

Jigar Shah is trying to use his perch overseeing the department’s Loan Programs Office to help move the multi-headed behemoth that is the U.S. electricity industry into a decarbonized future. Latest News

Cat Clifford 5 min read

Photo of the the Department of Energy Building in downtown Washington DC, USA, against a blue backdrop.

How we know the energy transition is here

You may be under the impression the world isn't making much progress on tackling climate change. But several recent data points suggest the energy transition is happening, often faster than even some experts have predicted. Harder Line

Amy Harder 6 min read

Illustration with a blue background and a dark blue circle, in front of which are two hands planting a small plant along with a floating wind turbine and a solar panel.

Global energy watchdog puts on climate ‘referee’ hat

With higher profile, the IEA chief, Fatih Birol, faces scrutiny from all sides. Latest News

Anca Gurzu 7 min read

The exterior of a fancy marble building in Paris, lit up with blue lights and the letters

High school climate curriculum is boring. Let’s change that.

With a problem as crucial as climate change, we need to teach students about the solutions — and we need those lessons to stick. Voices

Vinesh Kothari 3 min read

Illustration of children in a classroom with an Earth and a thermometer on the blackboard.

Exclusive: In a first, MIT trains students to resolve clean energy conflicts

Students get academic credit and experience addressing real-world dilemmas, while the community and developer get free help resolving conflict. Latest News

Amy Harder 5 min read

Illustration of social panels surrounded by hands shaking in agreement

With climate change, feeling is more powerful than knowing

With record-breaking heat waves saturating headlines this summer, one might grow tired of such repetitive news about extreme weather. Unless — or more likely, until — it happens to you. Harder Line

Amy Harder 4 min read

Graphic of a woman's brain from the side

Big oil sends cash to shareholders over drilling and cleantech

Despite record profits and a growing pile of cash, the world’s oil and gas industry has been slashing its investments in exploration and new production. Data Dives

Bill Spindle 2 min read

Chart of oil and gas industry's expenditures

Why we can’t sacrifice our way out of climate change

Matt Rogers helped teach millions of homeowners to look for the leaf symbol on their Nest thermostats to save money—and curb climate change. Harder Line

Amy Harder 4 min read

Energy security and federal climate funding to shape 2023

A historic 2022 will drive what happens this year. In our last December edition, we reflected on the five trends we predicted would shape 2022. This week, we’re looking at five trends we’re watching at Cipher in 2023. Harder Line

Amy Harder 5 min read

Looking back to move ahead: Lessons learned from cleantech 1.0

Conventional wisdom says cleantech 1.0 was a bust. In a nutshell, cleantech 1.0: Beginning in 2006, venture capitalists poured more than $25 billion into clean energy technologies. Harder Line

Amy Harder 4 min read

If we can’t build things, we can’t tackle climate change: potential solutions

The U.S. government, venture capitalists and academics are looking for solutions to a messy trio of local opposition, outdated permitting processes and backlogged bureaucracy that’s threatening to upend America’s rapid shift to clean energy. Harder Line

Amy Harder 3 min read

If we can’t build things, we can’t tackle climate change: the problem

Local opposition, convoluted permitting processes and backlogged bureaucracies are hamstringing our attempts to tackle climate change. Harder Line

Amy Harder 3 min read

Saving rivers and fighting climate change: a personal conflict

I grew up fishing and floating the rivers of the American West, and now I work to help fight climate change through transportation electrification. Voices

Grayson Zulauf 3 min read

Energy savings: an easy option but a tough sell

Building renovations, heat pumps and triple-glazed windows are rarely the talk of the town—yet these kinds of energy efficiency measures are central to the European Union’s plan to shed Russian fossil fuels following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine. Latest News

Anca Gurzu 3 min read

Demand for clean energy is growing, so it better be there

Tadeu Carneiro, a 40-year veteran of the metals and mining industry, has bet his career on making steel from zero-emission electricity. Harder Line

Amy Harder 3 min read

Hurdles abound in race to build more clean energy

As conference attendees were waking up last week for the annual United Nations climate conference underway in Glasgow, Scotland, voters in Maine were rejecting a proposed power line sending Canadian hydropower to Massachusetts. Harder Line

Amy Harder 3 min read

Fitting the pieces of energy, climate together: This is how things change

Climate change is like a puzzle whose pieces are constantly changing in size and shape. Our focus at Cipher is on the technological transformations needed to get to net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050. Harder Line

Amy Harder 3 min read