A Positive Climate

A Positive Climate is the uplifting podcast about the solutions to climate change.

Hosted by Australian industry experts Nick Zeltzer (Managing Partner @ Positive Ventures, ex Virescent Ventures, ARENA, Origin Energy) and Alex McIntosh (Director, ARENA), the show charted as the top Australian podcast on Apple's Technology Podcast Chart in both 2022 and 2023.

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Recent Episodes

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Cheaper, Faster & Smarter EV Charging: How Kwetta Raised US$10.5M to Connect Millions of Vehicles to the Grid
4
Jan. 27, 2025

Cheaper, Faster & Smarter EV Charging: How Kwetta Raised US$10.5M to Connect Millions of Vehicles to the Grid

Nick chats with Mike Lazelle and Dr Rob Turner, co-founders of Kwetta , to discuss their groundbreaking approach to electrifying heavy vehicles. Kwetta has just raised ~$17 million AUD in Series A funding from the likes of Blackbird and Virescent Ventures to address the “grid issue” for EV charging. And they’ve given us a podcast exclusive! Their innovative chargers connect directly to the high-voltage grid, providing up to 10 times more power, cutting installation times by up to 70%, and avoidi
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A Positive Climate's Startup PITCHFEST 2024 (feat. ten startups!)
3
Dec. 11, 2024

A Positive Climate's Startup PITCHFEST 2024 (feat. ten startups!)

Nick Zeltzer and producer-turned-”shark” Mark Spencer hear pitches from ten up and coming Australian climate startups! Our third annual pitch episode with some incredible ~seed stage startups in the latest cohort from EnergyLab - Australia’s leading climate accelerator. The lineup: (02:16) Stralis Aircraft - Hydrogen-electric planes for emission-free flights (Bob Criner) (12:38) Enaxiom - Harnessing low-grade waste heat to decarbonize wastewater treatment (Tia Collings) (23:58) OptiGrid - Smarte
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Nuclear Energy in Australia (feat. Simon Holmes à Court)
2
Nov. 27, 2024

Nuclear Energy in Australia (feat. Simon Holmes à Court)

Nick chats to Simon Holmes à Court about nuclear energy in Australia. “When are you covering nuclear?” is one of the most common questions we’ve received from APC listeners. So we finally went there. And it was great to have Simon on to explore it all before we go back to our startup roots next episode with our THIRD pitch fest. (00:00) Intro (03:55) What people get wrong about nuclear (05:38) Simon’s background (07:27) Global Nuclear Energy Landscape (15:03) Safety Concerns (20:23) Waste (26:10
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Will Our Cars Power Our Homes?
1
Nov. 13, 2024

Will Our Cars Power Our Homes?

Nick chats to Tim Washington from JET Charge about using electric vehicles as batteries for our homes. Vehicle to grid technology could transform not one but *two* trillion dollar industries in energy and transport. All while paving the way to materially reduce carbon emissions and costs. It is simple enough but does it work? When will consumers have it? What impacts will it have? And what is it like running a startup with your wife? Thanks to Ellen Liang who also hopped on the mic! You can enjo
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A Positive Climate #Wrapped 2023
10
Oct. 30, 2023

A Positive Climate #Wrapped 2023

That’s a wrap! It's our annual review episode, with Alex and Nick covering all the climate technology news from 2023. The hottest year on record brings a reminder that we need to be doubling down on the right solutions, so we hope you enjoy our reflections about what we think matters. Thanks again to all you listening out there! It’s been a big year for us - where we hit the Top 5 in tech podcasts ( in Malawi ) - and we’ve loved hearing from many of you throughout the season. Chapters (00:00) I
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Startup Pitch Competition w/ TEN Australian Climate Tech Startups
9
Oct. 16, 2023

Startup Pitch Competition w/ TEN Australian Climate Tech Startups

Nick and Alex hear pitches from ten up and coming Australian startups working on climate solutions! *Vote HERE * We’re back with our second pitchfest episode! And again teaming up with EnergyLab’s accelerator program, but this time it’s different - there will be a winner decided by YOU ! We’ve secured some awesome prizes that will go to the People’s Choice startup. G+T Ventures, the startup arm Australian law firm Gilbert + Tobin has donated a free legal health checkup including review of key le
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Recent Blog Posts

Kwetta: The Kiwi Startup Revolutionizing EV Charging
Feb. 11, 2025

Kwetta: The Kiwi Startup Revolutionizing EV Charging

In the latest episode, Nick dived into the electrification of heavy transport. A sector critical to decarbonisation but potentially stalled by a hidden bottleneck: the grid itself.The Next Frontier While electric cars are becoming more ma…
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AMSL Aero Hydrogen Powered Plane Wins ARENA Funding
Nov. 7, 2023

AMSL Aero Hydrogen Powered Plane Wins ARENA Funding

Aerospace startup AMSL Aero has received $5.43 million in funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency to help develop its hydrogen-powered electric Vertical Take-Off and Landing (eVTOL) aircraft.We were thrilled to have An…
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A Positive Climate Pitchfest 2023: We have a winning climate tech startup!
Oct. 30, 2023

A Positive Climate Pitchfest 2023: We have a winning climate tech startup!

Think you know what it takes to succeed in the world of climate tech and entrepreneurship? Pitchfest 2023 provided an opportunity to put your judgement to the test. Together with EnergyLab, we brought together ten of Australia’s most …
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About the Hosts

Nick Zeltzer Profile Photo
Nick Zeltzer

Nick Zeltzer has spent 15 years at the intersection of capital, energy and climate, with roles spanning ARENA, CEFC, Virescent Ventures, Origin Energy, Puget Sound Energy (in Washington, USA) and Macquarie Group (in tech investment banking). He now runs Positive Ventures, a strategic advisory firm helping Australia's leading mission-driven companies secure investment and non-dilutive funding. Since 2023, clients have secured more than $60million in capital and approved grants.

Alex McIntosh Profile Photo
Alex McIntosh

Alex is passionate about innovation and solving one of the greatest challenges of our generation, climate change! Alex has been in the energy sector for over 5 years where she's had experience with hydrogen, distributed energy, pumped hydro and battery storage. Prior to joining the energy revolution, Alex worked in Deal Advisory at KPMG.

Reviews

Miss your podcast

"I’ve enjoyed all your episodes, they give us some hope that good things are happening to try and save this planet. Just wondering if you will be continuing your podcast this year as I miss it so muc…"

melbastorm | April 13, 2022

A deep dive with plenty of oxygen in tank

"This podcast has been perfect for a novice on renewable energy like me. Even though each episode is a deep dive into a specific area, the expertise that these guys have is dealt with so calmly and ac…"

pageypageypagey | July 27, 2022

Positive Content

"Great to hear about all the entrepreneurial climate positive activities going on out there in a fun setting. Gives us hope with engaging topics delivered in way that isn’t dry"

Rustacean | July 27, 2022

This podcast makes me happy!

"There is so much negativity out there about the future of our planet and challenges our climate faces. But I can honestly say that A Positive Climate makes me positive about a green future. Can’t wai…"

Tom - Qld, Australia | Nov. 2, 2022

Great climate topics and excellent guests

"I thoroughly enjoyed listening to the episode with the CEO and founder of MicroTau. It was very well organized and the discussion was moderated in a way that kept the topic engaging from start to fi…"

mofhtujdegg | June 29, 2023
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