The Carbon Removal Show

In this final episode of our public perceptions mini-series, Tom and Emily ask a deceptively simple question: what would a better conversation about carbon removal actually look like? One that can hold urgency without hype, complexity without alienation, and honesty without infighting. In this episode: 🧠 Why Stories Matter More Than Stats: Carbon removal isn’t short on data, but data alone doesn’t move people. We explore why stories linger longer than numbers, and how storytelling can humanise CDR without dumbing it down. 🌍 Who Is “The Public”, Really?: We remember that audiences are plural, contextual, and deeply shaped by geography, culture, and lived experience. One message will never fit all. ⚖️ When Internal Debates Spill Outside: Healthy disagreement is essential, but public mud-slinging over durability, methods, and perfection can confuse buyers, journalists, and newcomers. Where’s the line between rigour and self-sabotage? 😅 Humour, Humanity, and Letting the Mask Slip: We hear the case that humour, vulnerability, and emotional honesty are under-used tools in climate communication. From memes to podcasts, cultural work is not a nice-to-have, it’s infrastructure. 🎨 Imagining Futures: We consider how the arts can open up new ways of engaging with carbon removal. 🔀 Simplicity vs Complexity: How do we communicate urgency and necessity while staying honest about uncertainty and evolution? The challenge isn’t choosing one, but knowing which to lead with, and when. 🏢 From Climate Concept to Business Reality: What does this all mean for conversations with businesses? We consider how narratives must shift when speaking to buyers, CFOs, and decision-makers, without losing trust. 👥 Featuring Guest insights from: Shilpika Gautam (Opna) Ross Kenyon (Reversing Climate Change) Selina Wagner Leila Toplic (Carbonfuture) Hosts: Tom Previte and Emily Swaddle Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

In this second instalment of our miniseries on public perceptions of carbon removal, Tom and Emily dig into the roots of scepticism: where the hostility comes from, which fears are justified, and where misinformation takes hold. This episode explores why trust is hard-won - and so critical to get right. In this episode: 🧠 Fearing the New: From 19th-century electricity panics to GMOs and vaccines, we explore why novel technologies attract suspicion - and why CDR is no exception. 🌿 Nature, Identity, and Emotional Attachments: Public discomfort with “engineered” climate solutions isn’t irrational - it’s rooted in deep cultural and ecological values. We explore how biodiversity, land use, farming livelihoods, and spiritual relationships to place shape perceptions far more than technical risk assessments. 🏭 The Long Fossil Fuel Shadow: Why do so many people see carbon removal as Big Oil’s loophole? The team unpacks the long legacy of CCS, the role of energy majors in early DAC investments, and the powerful idea that “polluters should pay” - even though implementation is still murky. 📉 Moral Hazard, Greenwashing… or Misunderstanding?: Does buying or investing in CDR slow actual emissions cuts? The team pick apart the numbers, the caveats, and the narratives that refuse to die. 🌊 St Ives - When CDR Hits the Shoreline: We learn about a project that spiralled amid distrust and poor communication, and that illustrates why transparency and timing matter more than any technical spec sheet. 💬 The Myths We Tell Ourselves: Gigaton fantasies, $100-per-tonne illusions, and over-confidence that the “best technology” will eventually win. Which internal industry narratives are warping expectations, eroding credibility, and setting up the industry for disappointment? Learn More 🔗 Explore the St Ives community campaign - Read resources, statements and updates from the local activists who opposed the marine alkalinity trial in Cornwall. 🔬 Dive into the CO₂RE research on the St Ives case - A detailed review of what happened, why public trust broke down, and what the trial reveals about the social dimensions of marine CDR. 👥 Featuring Guest insights from: Ingrid Sundvor (Carbon Balance Initiative)Dr. Elspeth Spence (Cardiff University)Dr. Rob Bellamy (University of Manchester)Sebastian Manhart (Carbonfuture) Hosts: Tom Previte and Emily Swaddle Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Tom and Emily kick off a brand-new three-part miniseries on how people understand (and misunderstand) carbon removal - and what that means for the future of the sector. From the words we choose to the baggage they carry, from early “sci-fi” scepticism to today’s governance debates, this episode unpacks why public perceptions aren’t a side issue: they’re central to whether CDR can scale at all. In this episode: 🧠 Low Awareness, High Stakes: We look at why knowledge of CDR remains tiny - and yet how support rises sharply once people actually learn what it is. 📜 Early CDR Was… Science Fiction: Back in the noughties, carbon removal felt like aviation before the Wright brothers. But have we caught up? 🗣️ The Language Trap: “Ocean acidification”, “nature-based”, “engineered”: the words we choose shape the reactions we get. We hear why analogies can mislead, why metaphors can create false binaries, and why the “natural = good” instinct is more complicated than it looks. 🌏 When Context Changes Everything: From smallholders in Malaysia to farmers in Cornwall, public perceptions aren’t static - they’re contextual. 🏛️ Governance Isn’t Background Noise: We learn that CDR isn’t just hardware. Change the governance model, and you change the public response. People don’t just ask “what is CDR?”; they ask “who’s in charge?” 🔍 Before We Scale, We Need Trust: Early impressions matter. And in a landscape primed for misinformation and polarisation, how we communicate now will shape the governance, justice, and legitimacy of CDR for decades to come. 👥 Featuring Guest insights from: Dave Addison Ingrid Sundvor (Carbon Balance Initiative) Dr. Elspeth Spence (Cardiff University) Dr. Rob Bellamy (University of Manchester) Hosts: Tom Previte and Emily Swaddle Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

We are hosting an event!  Together with Coalition Member Supercritical and the FLN: GGR Future Leaders Network, we bring you… The Carbon Removal Chat Room: Ask Us Anything Supercritical HQ, London 6pm Wednesday 19th November Sign up here: https://luma.com/0ii0lsis We’ve created this event for newbies to CDR, first-timers and anyone who has carbon removal questions they want answered. We’ll be joined by Expert Guests from across the industry ready to share their knowledge and experience. Bring your questions and your CDR-curious friends! We'll bring the experts, the snacks, and the answers! See you there!

In this final instalment of our three-part policy miniseries, Tom and Emily look to the future of carbon removal policy: who’s shaping it, what’s getting in the way, and what else can Emily see in her crystal ball? In this episode: 🏗️ Building the Future Without a Manual: We meet a company navigating what it means to innovate when the rulebook hasn’t been written yet (and may be printed in two jurisdictions at once). 🎯 How CDR Is Getting Heard: Industry lobbying isn’t just for big corporates - our startup ecosystem can also get involved. But we learn than misperceptions around CDR (it’s not CCS!) are still widespread among policymakers. 💡 Voluntary Policy Is Still Policy: We explore the de facto power of the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi), which influences climate action across thousands of the world's biggest companies - despite being entirely voluntary. But will its guidance on removals give the sector the boost it needs? 🌍 Watch Out for the Global South: We all know that the future of CDR isn’t just in Europe and North America. But how can policy help build benefit-sharing frameworks, bring legal clarity, and drive investment confidence around the world? 🏙️ Think Global, Act Local: While attention is often on the big-hitters, are local initiatives quietly shaping the next wave of CDR? Bonus: you too can be a policy influencer without wearing a tie. 🧵 Now It’s Your Turn: After 15+ hours of interviews and more acronyms than we can legally fit on this page, we reflect on the biggest takeaways from this miniseries - complexity, possibility, and the role each of us has to play in shaping what comes next.   👥 Featuring: Guest insights from Oliver Grogono (Standard Gas Technologies)Nikolaus Wohlgemuth (Carbonfuture)Chris Sherwood, Elisabeth Harding and Lambrini Margariti (Negative Emissions Platform)Robert Höglund (Milkywire)Shilpika Gautam (Opna)Omoloro Meshack (CAP-A)Christopher Neidl (OpenAir Collective)Christoph Beuttler (Carbon Gap) Hosts Emily Swaddle and Tom PreviteProducer Ben Weaver-Hincks