Greentown Labs Climatetech Summit 2024: Solving the Climate Crisis Starts with Closing the Communication Gap

By Christine Williamson, Emily Fang, and Jack Levy

Greentown Labs Climatetech Summit brought together some of the brightest minds in climatetech, with industry heavyweights and innovators alike. Leaders from Amazon, TIME, and GE Vernova shared thought-provoking insights on the critical intersection of climate action, innovation, and communication. Julia Travaglini, Greentown Labs’ Head of Marketing, kicked off the summit, setting the tone for the exploration into scalable, actionable climate solutions. The energy was electric, and the message clear: solving the climate crisis is about the breakthrough technologies, but it’s also about redefining how we are communicating in the space.  

Somerville’s Mayor, Katjana Ballantyne, underscored the urgency of creating resilient, sustainable cities. With personal examples—like her fully electrified home and preference for biking over car ownership—Mayor Ballantyne illustrated the infrastructure challenges facing urban centers. From addressing roadblocks like the traditional use of gas in older infrastructure to doubling the city’s sustainability and environment budget, she highlighted the critical role cities play in scaling climate solutions and what individuals can do to make a difference.  

In her powerful address, TIME Chief Climate Officer Shyla Raghav emphasized, “The climate crisis is a communication crisis. If science alone could’ve fixed it, we would’ve decades ago.”

Shyla spoke to the need for a transformative narrative in climate action, advocating that acting on climate is not only ethical but also profitable. Her focus on the power of storytelling to shift perspectives resonated throughout the summit. She also shared how TIME’s vision for the future is focused on motivating collaboration and investment in scalable, cross-sector climate solutions.

Shyla’s sentiment echoed through a riveting session led by Amazon’s Chief Sustainability Officer, Kara Hurst. With experience bridging policy, academia, and the private sector, Kara addressed the challenges and opportunities that come with decarbonizing at scale. “Large corporations are being required to disclose more,” Kara noted, highlighting Amazon’s commitment to transparent reporting and regulatory readiness. She also added how those that can streamline this process will have an edge. Through Amazon’s $2 billion Climate Pledge Fund, Amazon partners with startups like Hippo Harvest and Carbon Cure to drive innovation within their ecosystem and advance their goal of becoming 100% renewable by 2025, which was awesome to hear about.  

GE Vernova CEO Scott Strazik also had a thought-provoking Q&A, joined on stage by Heatmap News Senior Reporter Jael Holzman. Tackling the role of optimism in driving the energy transition, Scott highlighted GE Vernova’s commitment to renewable energy and U.S. manufacturing, with expansions into the wind and transmission switchgear markets.

“We’re investing heavily in U.S. factory expansion,” Scott shared, “because we believe that building and transforming our electric power systems is beneficial for economic and energy security.”

As Scott and Jael discussed the future, their conversation touched on the need for balanced narratives in media, questioning whether the renewable energy industry receives a disproportionate amount of scrutiny compared to fossil fuels. By shifting from doom to opportunity, Jael emphasized the role of the press in rallying public support for large-scale climate action—a key message that resonated with attendees.

From innovative sanitation solutions by Change Water Labs to AI-enhanced air conditioners by Monaire, startup pitches showcased the vibrant and diverse ways climatetech is advancing sustainable solutions. The summit provided a platform for new collaborations, with companies, investors, and innovators aligning on the need for partnership to drive the climate transition forward.

With insights and new connections from this year’s summit, we’re more committed than ever to supporting climatetech leaders and amplifying their voices in this vital work. Stay tuned as we continue to share stories that inspire, innovate, and drive meaningful climate solutions forward through our clients’ industry-leading work!