The Think Tank section of Renewable Matter #61, devoted to gases, offers a broad perspective covering the history of science, climate policy and the geopolitics of energy.
We start with a long chat with materials scientist Mark Miodownik, the author of a brilliant and highly informative book on the history of gases, their discovery and how their various properties have shaped modern civilisation and continue to drive our economy.

We then discuss the role of methane in the energy transition and its real (and underestimated) impact on the climate with Robert Howarth, one of the world's leading experts on this greenhouse gas.

Last but not least, we spoke with IEEFA analyst Ana Maria Jaller-Makarewicz about the geopolitics of natural gas, in particular how the European Union will have to redraw the geography of its dependencies in the face of an increasingly unstable international situation.
Below is a preview of the topics we discussed. You can read the full interviews in Renewable Matter #61.

Mark Miodownik: Making the Invisible Visible

Every human being inhales an average of 12 kilograms of air per day. That is, 12 kilograms of gas in more or less consistent proportions: nitrogen, oxygen and small percentages of argon, carbon dioxide, water vapour, methane and others. However, Mark Miodownik observes, “every breath goes unnoticed”.

And gases do not “only” support life on the planet, but are also the foundation of the economy and modern civilisation. Steam powered the engines of the Industrial Revolution in the 18th century and still generates over 70% of the world’s electricity; methane powered the lights of cities in the 1800s, ushering in urbanisation, and today drives global geopolitics; nitrogen, thanks to the Haber-Bosch process, has enabled large-scale agriculture, feeding billions of people. Not to mention all the more or less well-known, rarer or more common gases that are the basis of various industrial chains and services, from refrigeration to medicine, from soft drinks to aerospace. And yet we continue to underestimate their importance: for we cannot see them, we cannot touch them, and they almost never have a smell. We therefore need to “make the invisible visible”.

Just like Mark Miodownik, interviewed for this issue by Giorgia Marino. A brilliant materials scientist, lecturer at University College London and director of the Institute of Making, in his book It's a Gas: The Magnificent and Elusive Elements that Expand Our World (Penguin, 2024) Miodownik compiles a fascinating and detailed account of the discovery of gases and their properties, featuring daring scientists, unexpected technological breakthroughs and economic revolutions. With a warning for the future: for while gases drive the world as we know it, certain ones also have the power to destroy it.

Robert Howarth: No, Natural Gas Is Not Better Than Coal

According to the IEA Global Methane Tracker 2025, methane (CH4) is “responsible for around 30% of the rise in global temperatures since the Industrial Revolution.” Methane plays a leading role in the current scenario of greenhouse gases, to the extent that it is the subject of specific international initiatives aimed at significantly reducing emissions by 2030. Examples of such initiatives include the Global Methane Pledge, signed by 122 countries in 2022. Given its characteristics – high heat retention capacity and relatively short atmospheric lifetime compared to carbon dioxide, for example – decisive action on methane emissions is one of the most effective strategies for mitigating climate change-related phenomena.

Robert Howarth, a biogeochemist and Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Cornell University, is widely regarded as one of the world’s foremost experts on this greenhouse gas. According to the Wall Street Journal’s 2024 definition, Howarth has earned the unenviable status of “the climate scientist that fossil fuel companies can’t stand” for his contribution to the definition of policies to block liquefied natural gas exports adopted during the Biden administration.

Together with Professor Howarth, Marco Moro attempts to paint a picture of methane, which is at the centre of debate between measures to curb emissions and a sharp increase in consumption.

Ana Maria Jaller-Makarewicz: Europe and the Geography of Dependencies

Natural gas has become the primary concern of every European energy analyst. It shapes global geopolitics, fuels political propaganda, determines the cost of Europeans’ energy bills and serves as the battleground for global decarbonisation. Never before, since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, has gas played such a central role in European and global debate.

In March 2026, the European Union will conclude winter with reserves below 30%. Therefore, approximately 60 billion cubic metres of gas need to be injected to bring stocks back to 83%, as they were at the beginning of 2025. All eyes are on the United States, now the leading exporter of LNG to Europe. While Asia continues to reduce its dependence on natural gas in favour of renewables, the EU finds itself caught between two fires: on the one hand, those who want to strengthen gas as a strategic and secure source; on the other, those who continue to push for transition despite attacks on the Green Deal by pro-Trump governments, such as Italy and Germany.

Renewable Matter approached various international gas industry associations, such as the powerful American Gas Association, for comment, but none were willing to discuss two key trends in the sector: the decline in European demand and the growing pressure to force the supply of US LNG.

To better understand the medium-term scenarios for natural gas and the complex relationship with the American “ally”, Emanuele Bompan spoke with Ana Maria Jaller-Makarewicz, Lead Energy Analyst at the IEEFA (Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis), an international think tank that analyses the energy sector from a financial perspective.

DOWLOAD AND READ ISSUE #61 OF RENEWABLE MATTER: GASES

Cover: Mark Miodownik, Robert Howarth and Ana Maria Jaller-Makarewicz