Dimming the Sun to Save the World | Stardust CEO Yanai Yedvab on Solving Climate Change by 2050

Yanai Yedvab thinks we need to completely overhaul the infrastructure of humanity to avoid a climate disaster, and we can't afford to wait the 70 years it’ll take to wean off fossil fuels. Before founding Stardust, Yanai spent nearly three decades in Israeli nuclear research, ending up as deputy chief scientist at the Israel Atomic Energy Commission.

Stardust is developing reflective particles to disperse into the upper atmosphere that will buy us the several decades we need to transition into a low-carbon economy. We sat down in New York to talk about how the technology works, the dangers at stake if we do nothing, and Yanai's radical optimism in spite of everything.

Stardust Publication on Safety: https://www.stardustsolutions.com/science

Stardust Publication on Ethics: https://www.stardustsolutions.com/guiding-principles

Extended Show Notes: https://finnmurphyirl.substack.com/p/191c8d8c-50a1-42d4-a44e-03e618b9d359

Transcript (with helpful links!): https://finnmurphyirl.substack.com/p/c04e6ebb-d1e8-4cbf-97d3-fee104f21536

Chapters:

00:00 Intro

01:10 From Nuclear Physics to The Climate Crisis

04:01 The Failure of Climate Activism

05:28 How Solar Reflective Technology Works

09:12 The 1991 Eruption of Mount Pinatubo

12:01 The Montreal Protocol and How to Negotiate in a World at War

16:03 Buying Time: Weaning off Fossil Fuels Will Take 50-70 Years

18:55 Data Centers, Fission, and Fusion

19:59 Preparing for Emergencies the Israeli Way

23:40 Radical Transparency: The Only Way To Gain Trust

27:05 Persuading the Policymakers

33:05 Unlimited Ambition is What Will Save the World

35:10 Stardust Will Unlock Quantum Leaps in Weather Prediction

36:54 Stardust in 2050

40:20 Why Stardust Has to Be a Private Company

45:32 Optimism for the Future is Rational

Yanai Yedvab is a nuclear physicist, former deputy chief scientist at the Israel Atomic Energy Commission, and the co-founder and CEO of Stardust, a solar geoengineering company.

Stardust: https://www.stardustsolutions.com/

Forecast 2050 is a series about the next 25 years—and the builders, thinkers, and leaders shaping what comes next.

Finn on X: https://x.com/FinnMurphy12

Finn on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/finn-murphy-16160465/

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