Is carbon dioxide removal… magic? Well, no. But if you’ve never heard of CDR, as climate folks call it, then it might sound like it.
In short, we have the technology to suck planet-warming CO2 out of the atmosphere and store it away where it can’t contribute to climate change. A scattering of CDR facilities are already running in places like Iceland and California, and more are in the works.
This is promising news, but it’s also complex. That’s for a few reasons:
- It doesn’t mean we don’t have to cut fossil fuel use, or that we can keep emitting ever more greenhouse gases. We can’t.
- At the same time, we can’t afford to ignore CDR altogether. Experts say we need it to scale up drastically to help limit the worst impacts of climate change.
- CDR encompasses a vast range of approaches, from direct air capture machines to simply planting more trees. How do you deploy each one to get the best bang for your buck, to last a long time, and to benefit local communities?
To answer this kind of question, and to navigate CDR’s constraints and possibilities broadly, you need context. That’s where Terra.do and Silvan Aeschlimann come in.
Carbon Removal Technologies and Risks
Our four-week Carbon Removal Technologies and Risks course is designed for:
- Investors and founders considering new CDR ventures
- Consultants and sustainability managers ready to develop CDR expertise
- Engineers and research scientists intrigued by CDR’s potential
- Policymakers, marketers, and comms pros keen to understand and communicate about CDR
As an industry, carbon dioxide removal options are in their early days. Guiding you through this uncharted territory is course creator Silvan Aeschlimann.
An economist by training, Silvan is a former direct air capture and storage lead at RMI. (Formerly known as the Rocky Mountain Institute, RMI is a think tank and venerable source of authoritative reports on sustainability technologies.) Silvan helped author several roadmaps for RMI and started with Terra.do as a guest lecturer on CDR and direct air capture in early 2023.
The Carbon Removal Technologies and Risks course blends asynchronous learning with live lab groups that meet weekly; recordings will also be available.
After four weeks, you’ll have the skills to discern not only what CDR can and can’t do, but which CDR claims are credible and which are probably bogus. You’ll even learn how to de-risk a CDR portfolio by balancing key technologies.
Before that, though, check out our free event with Silvan. On Thursday, September 19, he’ll dive into a key question: To what extent is direct air capture a viable climate solution, as opposed to mere cover for big emitters? Register here now.
Key Details
- Silvan’s free event, “Direct Air Capture: Climate Solution or Cover for Big Emitters?” is on Thursday, September 19.
➡️ I’m ready to register! - The four-week Carbon Removal Technologies and Risks course starts on Thursday, September 26.
- The deadline to sign up for the course is Wednesday, September 25.
- The course meets live each Thursday from 8 am to 9:30 Pacific. (Recordings will also be available.) Counting asynchronous work, the time commitment is about four hours weekly.
➡️ Sounds great, sign me up!
