The war in Ukraine is only the latest fossil fuel war, but it may have birthed the world’s first act of state climate terrorism. Russia is suspected of having detonated three explosions along the Nord Stream Pipeline in the Baltic Sea, releasing tons of methane into the ocean and atmosphere.

Blowing up the pipeline doesn’t present any obvious political gains, since it had been shut off since the beginning of September as part of sanctions against Russia.

Climate goals, however, will certainly be the loser. In order to maintain minimum pressure, the pipeline was holding 300 million cubic meters of methane gas at the time of the explosion. Much of that methane will now end up in the atmosphere, massively spiking emissions of a greenhouse gas the world is struggling to contain already.

It’s yet another example of pernicious fossil fuel geopolitics interfering with climate goals.

But halfway across the world, Russia’s ally China has been busy using climate action to achieve the same strategic goal of undermining the United States and Europe.

Green Belt and Road

In recent years, China has embarked on a climate diplomacy campaign across the world that covers everything from the energy transition to farming adaptation strategies.

In Benin, Chinese consultants are helping maize farmers adapt to harsh droughts by employing planting techniques honed in China that increase output in dry conditions.

Chinese companies are building a modern highway through the remote mountains of Tajikistan while accounting for ecological impacts in its “green development guidelines”.

Then there’s Bangladesh. A report this week found that China is supporting as much as 90% of the country’s energy transition toward a 2050 goal to produce 41% of its growing power demand from renewables. Those plans still include three new coal power plants, in an apparent violation of China’s pledge to stop funding coal abroad.

But those will come online along with 450 MW of solar power built by a joint Chinese-Bangladeshi utility venture consummated in 2020.

Each of these moves is meant to increase Chinese influence in countries where the United States and Europe have faltered on promises to help fund a just transition to renewables, and to deal with loss and damage from climate change.

End of the Petrodollar

It is impossible to understand China’s climate moves abroad without first understanding the global economic system China wants to replace: the American petrodollar.

The United States dollar has dominated the international financial system since 1944, when the Bretton Woods conference led to the creation of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. Those agreements built the international governance framework we know today, but they also set in motion geopolitical dynamics leading to the climate crisis.

After World War 2, the United States held most of the world’s gold reserves. That allowed the U.S. to offer a war-torn world a deal: any dollar could be redeemed for the value of gold if foreign governments would attach the value of their currency (or peg) in a fixed ratio to the dollar.

Most of the world’s major economies (and their colonies) agreed, signing the Bretton Woods in July 1944 and officially making the U.S. dollar the global reserve currency. With the stroke of a few diplomats’ pens, the U.S. cemented itself as the premier superpower.

The U.S. promptly flexed that power to create alliances securing its access to fossil fuels. A 1945 agreement with Saudi Arabia guaranteed that oil contracts would be paid in dollars, setting a standard that oil producing countries around the world would follow for years to come.

That system worked until 1971, when the U.S. economy found itself mired in stagflation: a confluence of slow economic growth, high unemployment and increasing rates of inflation. As the economic downturn dragged on, international investors got nervous and soon they started knocking on the U.S. Federal Reserve’s door to redeem their dollars for gold as Bretton Woods had promised.

Faced with a declining gold reserve, U.S. President Richard Nixon blew up the status quo: he announced the U.S. treasury would no longer convert dollars to gold, causing the value of the dollar to plummet practically overnight.

Back in Saudi Arabia, this was a huge problem. As the dollar crashed, the value of Saudi Arabia’s oil-for-dollars contracts went with it. And since its economy was so highly concentrated in oil production, Saudi Arabia was overwhelmingly dependent on imports from other countries. Those transactions took place with foreign currencies which were suddenly much more expensive, and the cost of living in Saudi Arabia went through the roof for circumstances far beyond their control.

The Saudis were, to put it crudely, pissed, but they didn’t have many options. They had tried oil embargoes twice before, and both had failed. Then in 1973, Nixon asked Congress to help Saudi Arabia’s arch-enemy Israel in its war against Arab nations.

Enough was enough. OPEC countries declared an oil embargo that quadrupled the price of oil in six months, forcing an energy crisis in the U.S. and Europe that pushed some governors to restrict Christmas lights.

Oil-producing countries had made their point: they had the power to cancel Christmas in Oregon if they didn’t get a good deal in dollars. Western countries paid the price, and the petrodollar was born as OPEC countries suddenly became flush with more cash than they could spend on their own economies.

Those petrodollars have since extended the reign of U.S. currency, much to the dissatisfaction of China, which in 2009 called for an end to the U.S. dollar’s dominance.

And this is where climate change comes in. Since U.S dollars spent to purchase oil dominate the global economy, then a world less reliant on fossil fuels is also a world that is less beholden to the United States dollar hegemony.

Seen in this light, every solar panel installed by Chinese utilities abroad replaces American oil money in that country’s coffers. That means less U.S. influence and greater returns for Chinese investors leading the world in renewable energy production.

🎥 Mini-doc of the week:

From our friends at Pique Action.

Dandelion Energy is a geothermal heating and cooling company. By replacing furnaces and boilers with geothermal systems, they’re able to harvest a reliable, natural energy source while cutting down on costs and emissions. To watch Pique Action' newest mini-doc on Dandelion Energy, click here

📅 Event Opportunity:

From our friends at Pique Action.

Scale for ClimateTech and the Consulate General of Canada in New York is pleased to bring to you a ClimateTech Innovation Showcase on October 6 - a full day, in-person event, dedicated to celebrating ClimateTech innovators. Attendees will have the opportunity to hear pitches and presentations, see products and solutions on display, network, and engage with ecosystem players in New York State. This event will also feature a Manufacturing Roadmap Pitch Competition the winner will receive a cash prize of $20,000 for project support, and in-kind support from Scale For ClimateTech and NY State manufacturers.

🌎 Climate Jobs

Check out some of the latest featured jobs below. If you don't see anything that speaks to you, you can always go to Climatebase to explore thousands of other opportunities.

Rumin8

"Rumin8 is tackling one of the biggest contributors to climate change: methane emissions from livestock. The digestive process of beef and dairy cattle accounts for a full 3.7% of all greenhouse gas emissions, a huge contribution from a single source. With billions of people around the world relying on animal proteins as part of their daily diet, eliminating livestock methane ..."

• Senior Strategy Analyst (Remote (United States))

Agricarbon UK Ltd

"Agricarbon is an industry leader in helping a wide range of high-end/top draw clients to participate in removing carbon from the atmosphere and storing it in soil. ..."

• Sales and Business Development Executive (Remote)

ReFED

ReFED is a national nonprofit working to end food loss and waste across the food system by advancing data-driven solutions to the problem. ..."

• Software Engineer (Remote)

SiteCaptue

"SiteCapture is a profitable, fast growing SaaS company that has developed the solar industry's leading field operations management software platform. SiteCapture enables solar companies to operate more efficiently effectively driving faster deployment of solar energy production across the country and beyond. ..."

• Lead/Senior iOS Developer (Remote (Oakland, CA, USA))

Pela

"We are designing waste out of the human experience. Pela has been around for over 10 years and has helped over 1 million customers make the switch to more eco-friendly products. Pela has now recently launched our flagship smart waste product. ..."

• Director of Marketing, Pela Case (Remote (Kelowna, BC))
• Senior Manager, Applied Science (Remote (Kelowna, BC))
• Senior Accountant, Operations (Remote (Kelowna, BC))
• Product Manager, Mobile (Remote (Kelowna, BC))
• Mobile Software Engineer - Android (Remote (Kelowna, BC))
• Lead Software Engineer - Frontend (E-Commerce) (Remote (Kelowna, BC))
• Lead Firmware Engineer, Embedded Hardware (Remote (Kelowna, BC))
• Hardware Engineer, Mechatronics (Remote (Kelowna, BC))
• Frontend Software Engineer - Ecommerce (Remote (Kelowna, BC))
• Call Centre Specialist - Voice Agent (Remote (Kelowna, BC))
• Backend Software Engineer (Remote (Kelowna, BC))

Lydian

"Lydian is developing an electro-thermal reactor technology to convert captured CO2 into fuels and chemicals. ..."

• Founding Mechanical/Systems Engineer (Boston, MA, USA)
• Founding Chemical/R&D Engineer (Boston, MA, USA)

Permanent

"Permanent is the market infrastructure for the future food system. ..."

• Account Executive, Farmers & Food Distributors (Remote (NYC, NY, USA))
• Customer Success, Farmers and Food Systems (Remote (NYC, NY, USA))
• Full-Stack Software Engineer (Senior/Lead/Tech Lead) (Remote (NYC, NY, USA))
• Full-Stack Software Engineer, Tech Lead (Remote (NYC, NY, USA))

Ranger Power

"Ranger Power is a utility-scale solar development company developing projects across the United States. ..."

• Assistant Development Manager (Chicago, IL, USA)
• Development Manager (Chicago, IL, USA)
• Project Origination Manager (Chicago, IL, USA)
• Development Coordinator (Chicago, IL, USA)
• Development Intern (Chicago, IL, USA)

DG+Design

"DG+Design is a marketing and creative agency with a focus on clean energy and sustainable brands. Our work is founded on the passion to uniquely combine clean energy expertise, creative skill, and marketing strategy to provide unrivaled value for clients. ..."

• Visual Designer (Remote (Los Angeles, CA, USA))
• Marketing Associate, Clean Energy (Remote (Los Angeles, CA, USA))
• Marketing Manager, Clean Energy (Remote (Los Angeles, CA, USA))
• Marketing Associate, Clean Energy (Remote (Los Angeles, CA, USA))

Electrified Thermal Solutions, Inc

"Electrified Thermal is on a mission to decarbonize industry with renewable heat. We are building the Joule Hive™ thermal battery: an energy storage technology that converts and stores cheap, renewable electricity as high-temperature heat.  ..."

• Internship - Marketing and Communications (Medford, MA)
• Internship - Electrical Engineer (Medford, MA)
• Test Engineer - Power and Controls (Medford, MA)
• Mechanical Engineer - FEA Thermal Modeling (Medford, MA)
• Mechanical Engineer - FEA Product Design (Medford, MA)
• Materials Engineer (Medford, MA)
• Head of Business Development (Medford, MA)

Carbon Gap

"Carbon Gap is a climate not-for-profit focused on eliminating the carbon dioxide that’s already heating up the planet. We exist to drive essential climate action by making Europe a leader in carbon removal, working with governments, scientists, NGOs, and businesses to unlock policy support for the full spectrum of carbon removal techniques, storing carbon safely in trees, soils, oceans, rocks, ..."

• Junior roles in Policy, Communications, and Operations (Remote (Brussels, Belgium))
• Carbon Removal Science and Advocacy Fellow (Remote (Oxford, UK))
• Senior Communications Manager (Remote (London, UK))
• Senior Operations Manager (Remote (London, UK))
• Policy Analyst or Manager, UK (London, UK)
• Policy Director, UK (London, UK)
• Policy Analyst or Manager, EU Affairs (Brussels, Belgium)
• Policy Director, EU Affairs (Brussels, Belgium)

Climate Central

"Climate Central researches and reports on the impacts of climate change, including sea level rise and coastal flooding, extreme weather and weather attribution, global warming and local temperature trends, carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions. ..."

• Software Engineering Manager (Remote (Princeton, NJ, USA))

Ambrook

"We started Ambrook ( ambrook.com ) with a mission to help farmers become more profitable and more sustainable. There is a virtuous cycle between profitability and sustainability in many natural resource industries, especially agriculture. Better soil health, water conservation, and climate resilience often leads to lower costs, increased yields, and price premiums for crops or livestock in the market. To ..."

• Software Engineer (Remote (United States))

Treehouse Management, LLC

"Treehouse Management is the Minneapolis-based management company of Treehouse Investments, a family-owned ESG firm..."

• Compliance Officer (MN, USA)
• Operations Administrative Assistant (Minneapolis, MN, USA)

Carbon America

"Carbon America is the first vertically integrated company in the industry – a one-stop-shop of engineers, project managers, developers, and financiers focused on capturing more CO2 in shorter amounts of time and at lower costs. ..."

• Principal Engineering Project Manager – R&D (Arvada, CO, USA)
• Senior Principal Process Engineer (Arvada, CO, USA)
• Software Developer (Arvada, CO, USA)
• Director, Land & External Relations (Lakewood, CO, USA)
• Principal Mechanical Engineer- Turbomachine (Arvada, CO, USA)
• Business Development Director (Lakewood, CO, USA)
• Facilities Engineer (Arvada, CO, USA)
• Pipeline Engineer (Arvada, CO, USA)

wasted*

"wasted* is developing circular sanitation infrastructure that transforms human waste into safe and effective fertilizer. We’re starting by transforming the archaic portable sanitation industry (market size $17B) to make it better for users, operators, and the planet. ..."

• Growth and BD Associate (Remote (Burlington, VT, USA))
• Senior Product Manager (Hardware) (Remote)
• Head of Operations (Remote)

Carbon Mapper

"Carbon Mapper is a non-profit organization committed to detecting, pinpointing, quantifying, and tracking 80% of global methane and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. ..."

• Senior Front End Engineer (Remote (USA))

Currently Weather Service

"Currently is a weather service for the climate emergency. Our mission is to cultivate timely and accurate weather information that supports community resilience and safety. ..."

• Director of Operations (Remote (North America))
• Director of Growth and Marketing (North America)

Prime Coalition

"Prime Coalition is a 501(c)(3) public charity that partners with mission-aligned investors to support extraordinary companies that combat climate change, have a high likelihood of achieving commercial success, and would otherwise have a difficult time raising adequate financial support to scale.  ..."

• Impact Associate (Remote)
• Project Frame Associate (Remote)

That's it for this week! Remember, you can always view thousands of more jobs on Climatebase.org.