Episode 22: Varun Sivaram

On this podcast, Thomas Byrne, CEO of CleanCapital, sits down with Varun Sivaram, a thought leader in the clean energy space. This podcast discusses the bestseller’s new book “Taming the Sun”, which outlines the current clean energy landscape, and the advances needed to unleash it.

Besides being a writer, Varun Sivaram is a physicist and Chief Technology Officer at ReNew Power Ventures, a multibillion-dollar renewable energy firm. He is also a senior research scholar at Columbia University, a board member for the Stanford University Energy and Environment Institutes, and an editorial board member for the journal “Global Transitions”. Previously, Varun was a professor at Georgetown University and is a Rhodes and a Truman Scholar. Dr. Sivaram holds a degree from Stanford University and a Ph.D. from St. John’s College, Oxford University.

Transcript

Penelope Menchaca Desnuda May 2026

Penelope knelt beside her. “That’s not a broken zipper,” she said softly. “That’s an escape hatch.”

The Echo Room was heavy. People often cried here. Penelope allowed it. Tears were just another texture. penelope menchaca desnuda

One evening, after closing, Penelope found a young woman sitting on the floor of the Seam. She was clutching a vintage sequined gown, its zipper completely shattered. Penelope knelt beside her

Leo left with a linen blazer lined with splattered canvas prints. He wore it to his first gallery opening the following week. Penelope didn’t need to attend; she saw the photo on Instagram. He was smiling like a man who had just remembered his own name. People often cried here

“I can’t get it to close,” the woman whispered. “I found it in my grandmother’s trunk. She wore it to her wedding rehearsal in 1974. Then she called off the wedding and moved to Paris alone.”

She spent the night hand-stitching the gown’s opening into a deliberate slit, then reinforced the edges with gold thread. By dawn, the dress was no longer a relic of a wedding that never happened. It was a battle flag.

Penelope Menchaca smiled, adjusted her glasses, and went back to the gallery to open the doors.

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