> Gore is an investor in green-technology businesses—a fact that regularly provokes criticism for alleged conflicts of interest—

Not sure what the conflict is? It's really just interest.

I think the “interests” that might “conflict” are “business” vs. “public policy.”

For example, a criticism an opponent of Al Gore might make is something like, “Would you still be an advocate for climate policy X if you didn’t stand to gain $Y due to its implementation?”

Of course, I’m not saying the criticism necessarily holds up to careful scrutiny. And, from what I can tell, neither does the author of this article.

And a rebuttal to that criticism is "putting your money where your mouth is".