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Outside/In

The future was hydrogen

Outside/In

NHPR

Society & Culture, Documentary, Natural Sciences, Nature, Science

4.71.5K Ratings

🗓️ 8 May 2025

⏱️ 27 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Mike Strizki drives the only hydrogen-powered car on the East Coast. That’s because he’s the only person with access to fuel… which he makes, by himself, in his backyard in New Jersey.  And it’s not just his car. Mike’s house, his lawnmower, even his bicycle are all powered by hydrogen. He’s convinced that this element could be the single most important solution to the climate crisis, if only people and governments would just get on board. But he’s been screaming this from the rooftop of his hydrogen house for two decades. And today, fewer than 0.2% of cars in the US run on hydrogen. What’s it like to be the earliest early adopter of a technology that never catches on? And does Mike still have a chance to be proven right? Featuring Mike Strizki. Produced by Felix Poon. For full credits and transcript, visit outsideinradio.org.   SUPPORT Outside/In is made possible with listener support. Click here to become a sustaining member of Outside/In.  Follow Outside/In on Instagram or join our private discussion group on Facebook.   LINKS In the race to decarbonize cars, battery electric vehicles have proven more popular than hydrogen. But debate still rages on which is the better zero-emission technology. Some say hydrogen cars cannot catch up to battery-electric vehicles, whereas others claim EVs aren’t the future, hydrogen is. Mike Strizki and his hydrogen-powered house have been featured on The Wall Street Journal, ABC World News, and a number of New York Times articles including “The Zero-Energy Solution,” and “The Gospel of Hydrogen Power.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0

Hey, this is Outside In, a show where curiosity and the natural world collide.

0:05.2

I'm Nate Hetchie.

0:06.8

So it's warming the fuel cell up now.

0:09.2

Yeah.

0:09.6

Okay, we're online.

0:11.6

I want to go for a ride?

0:13.3

There are a lot of self-described car guys out there.

0:16.2

People who obsess over engines, they talk about RPMs, they love to hang out under the hood.

0:22.7

Okay, go ahead.

0:26.1

All right.

0:27.5

It's got some torque.

0:28.8

It's got some balls.

0:30.0

Yeah.

0:30.8

Remember all the powers.

0:32.1

This is Mike Stridsky.

0:33.4

He's chatting with our producer, Felix Poon.

0:35.3

And Mike is definitely a car guy,

0:39.4

but of a very different breed.

0:43.1

Mike loves his car because it runs on hydrogen.

0:46.4

Otherwise, it looks like just any normal car from the outside.

0:49.7

Well, except for it's got an H2O button in it.

0:51.2

H2O button.

...

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