The WW2-Inspired Mobilization Effort To Decarbonize Our Economy w/ Jyri Engeström, Co-Founder @ Yes VC

Today's You've Been Warmed episode is one of the most impressive thus far. I had the pleasure to speak to Jyri Engeström - a Finnish serial entrepreneur and investor, currently based in Silicon Valley. He is the co-founder of YES VC - a pre-seed and seed stage fund focused on companies at the vanguard of movements.

Before becoming an investor, Jyri had an impressive career as an entrepreneur, having founded Jaiku (which was acquired by Google) and Ditto (which was acquired by GroupOn).

At Yes VC, because of their investment focus on companies that can become social movements, it's extremely apparent how climate change comes into focus and represents a large part of what they're looking for.

I must confess that I wasn't expecting the turn that the first half of the interview took - Jyri made parallels between the climate crisis and WW2 with impeccable detail and references,  he showed inspiring optimism that we can mobilise to tackle climate change and he laid out a compelling case as to how businesses, government & the society at large have to come together to realise that vision.

We then explored how climate change is becoming a priority for founders in Silicon Valley and how much that has changed recently, what they look at in terms of the companies they invest in and the thought process that goes behind that, as well as the sectors that he thinks require a lot of investment. There were also some deep philosophical thoughts and quotes towards the end, but I won't spoil that for you now.

I highly recommend that you tune into this one with your full attention, I promise it will not dissapoint.

JYRI & YES VC RELEVANT LINKS

Jyri's Twitter - https://twitter.com/jyri

Jyri's LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jyriengestrom/

Yes VC Website - https://yes.vc/

TIMECODES (to be corrected)

3:54 - His Background & Why He's a  Climate Optimist

8:05 - Climate Scenarios Looking Forward & What Urgency We Need To Have

10:04 - Why We Need An Effort Comparative To The World War 2 Mobilization

17:13 - How Government & Businesses Need To Work Together

23:33 - The Rise Of Attention To Climate Change In Silicon Valley

28:28 - VC Challenges & What They Look For When Investing In Companies

35:20 - A Startup Example That Can Help Tackle Climate Change

39:43 - What Are The Areas That Require Massive Investment

52:17 - Science vs Business vs Politics vs Society

RESOURCES MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE

True Ventures - https://trueventures.com/

Caterina Fake - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caterina_Fake

Flickr - https://www.flickr.com/

Kickstarter - https://www.kickstarter.com/

Etsy - https://www.etsy.com/

Bluebottle Coffee - https://bluebottlecoffee.com/

Saul Griffith - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saul_Griffith

'It’s too late for a carbon tax—it’s time for a world war against climate change' by Saul Griffith - https://www.fastcompany.com/90423806/its-too-late-for-a-carbon-tax-its-time-for-a-world-war-against-climate-change

Kelly Wanser - https://twitter.com/kellywanser

Slush Conference - https://www.slush.org/

Sundance Film Festival - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sundance_Film_Festival

Gamechangers Documentary - https://gamechangersmovie.com/

Saudi Aramco - https://www.saudiaramco.com/

'The Demon-Haunted World' Book by Carl Sagan - https://www.amazon.com/Demon-Haunted-World-Science-Candle-Dark-ebook/dp/B004W0I00Q

The Manhattan Project - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Manhattan_Project

Alex Laskey (Rewiring America co-author) - https://www.ted.com/talks/alex_laskey_how_behavioral_science_can_lower_your_energy_bill?language=en