Juan Verde
Spanish-American political advisor and sustainability consultant who worked in the Clinton and Obama administrations
Juan Verde (Spanish-American political advisor and sustainability consultant who worked in the Clinton and Obama administrations) has appeared as a guest on 1 episode in TMT. Topics they speak about most include Sustainability in business, Globalization, 2008 Democratic Party presidential primaries.
In their words
Positions and remarks grouped by topic, each with the exact quote and where it was said.
Other remarks
Verde contrasts American tolerance of failure with a European culture in which failure is penalized.
“In Europe, we think that failure follows you for the rest of your life”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 1:13:37
Verde argues that large corporations stagnate because middle managers are taught to manage upward to please bosses rather than downward.
“there's a disconnect between the CEO and the middle management because people are taught to manage upwards”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 59:24
Verde names Bill Clinton, rather than Obama, as the best leader he worked for, crediting him with teaching the importance of relationships.
“Whoa. Surprisingly, I think Bill Clinton, and not Obama. I had a great relationship and a friendship with him”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 1:10:49
Sustainability in business
Verde argues that government is the most transformative actor because it defines incentives, such as subsidies for fossil fuels or clean tech.
“governments set the rules and do one thing and one thing only. They define incentives”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 1:05:40
Verde cites data that, at equal price and quality, 94% of consumers choose the environmentally responsible product.
“same quality, same price. 94% of consumers will always choose the responsible choice”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 51:58
Verde says sustainability must be pitched to CEOs as profitable, because they answer to shareholders rather than to moral appeals.
“I'm sorry, CEOs are not in the business of doing only doing the right thing”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 50:44
Globalization
Verde argues that threats like AI, nuclear proliferation and bioweapons require international cooperation that fragmentation undermines.
“Nobody can solve any of those problems on your own. You have to promote cooperation around the world”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 40:58
Verde warns that the world has shifted from multilateralism toward transactional bilateral diplomacy, fragmenting it further.
“I would even call it transactional and opportunistic diplomacy. And that's scary because it fragments the world more”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 28:25
2008 Democratic Party presidential primaries
Verde says Al Gore would have made a great president and the world would be very different had he won.
“And he would have made a great president. Oh, he would have been a great president”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 43:02
Electric vehicles in Norway
Verde is most bullish on Norway, citing its rise from 2% to 90% electric vehicles among new car sales within a decade.
“They have gone from 2% electric cars to 90% electric cars of new sales in nothing less than a decade”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 1:12:08
Environmental, social, and governance
Verde believes the ESG concept is salvageable but needs redefinition and a new name.
“It is salvageable, but it has to be redefined. And we have to come up with a new name”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 1:09:35
Carbon tax
Verde prefers a carbon tax over green subsidies, citing his opposition to excessive public spending and the tax's incentive effects.
“So I would say that carbon tax because it provides incentives. You penalize the one that's doing it wrong and you help the one that's doing it right”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 1:10:21
Russian invasion of Ukraine
Verde states that Germany cut its electricity dependence on Russian gas from 45% to 8% in four years after the invasion of Ukraine.
“When Russia invaded Ukraine, 45% of Germany's electricity came from Russia's natural gas. So in four years, they have gone from 45% to 8%”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 1:02:05
Artificial intelligence
Verde claims that AI data centers seeking reliable clean energy are the biggest accelerator of sustainability in the U.S.
“what is the largest accelerator of sustainability in the United States right now? AI and data centers”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 1:02:05
Climate change
Verde argues that U.S. retreat from electric vehicles on climate-skeptic grounds has let China win the market.
“companies are now being told that climate change is fake and we're stopped producing and manufacturing electric cars. And who's winning? China”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 56:20
Political polarization in the United States
Verde contends that middle-class job losses from offshoring to China enabled extreme movements that blame globalization and immigrants.
“And that created the right conditions for popular production. right and left extreme movements to just blame it on globalization, blame it on the immigrants”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 37:55
International trade
Verde argues that Europe's longest period of peace, from 1945 to 2022, was underpinned by U.S.–European trade interdependence.
“The longest period of peace and economic stability in the last 2000 years in Europe took place between 1945 and 2022”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 26:04
Finding one's passion
Verde recounts that his mother advised him to choose a job he was passionate about over the highest salary.
“don't worry about the money. Find a job that you can be passionate about”
Tomorrow, Today: Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar Natarajan (Oct 22, 2026) · Listen from 12:11
Appearances
Juan Verde on Politics, Purpose, Leadership, Sustainability and the Future | Shekhar NatarajanTomorrow, Today · Oct 22, 2026 · 1 h 15 min
Shekhar Natarajan interviews Juan Verde about his path from the Canary Islands to U.S. politics, globalization, polarization, business sustainability and AI.
Often appears with
- Shekhar Natarajan · 1 shared episode