“It’s such a big problem and I don’t know where to start”. This is unfortunately one of the most common phrases heard from people thinking about starting to work in climate and by extension, carbon removal. We get it - we’ve been there before ourselves. The following is a living, curated list of resources, communities and content which we wish we knew about (or just simply existed) when we were starting on this carbon removal journey. As ever, if there is something you think deserves a mention which we missed, drop us a note via email, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Where we’d start…

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Fact Sheet: Carbon Removal: A 700-word introductory web page by American University’s Institute for Carbon Removal Law & Policy summarising the what, why and how of carbon removal, as well as introducing various considerations and concerns around the deployment of carbon removal.

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OpenAir Collective: For those who want to get their hands (potentially quite literally) dirty in advancing both the science and policy agenda around direct air capture and carbon removal, OpenAir is a hugely welcoming global community focused on action. Structured around open-science principles conducting open source R&D on direct air capture, as well as policy focused ‘missions’ with a track record of successfully introducing carbon removal focused legislation, OpenAir is the community to join for those looking to make a tangible impact in carbon removal from day one.

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Carbon Removal Academy: To our knowledge, the Carbon Removal Academy is the first open, online course on carbon removal that you’d typically find on Coursera or Udemy. Structured to provide background knowledge across the portfolio of carbon removal pathways, it’s a fantastic introduction for those visual learners looking to gain a broad-based understanding of carbon removal before going deeper on specific pathways.

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Airminers: Probably the OG of carbon removal ecosystems. Airminers is a global community of 1250+ people around the world living on Slack with channels focused on different carbon removal verticals (direct air capture, ocean-based carbon removal, business model innovation, etc), and an increasingly frequent (virtual) events calendar; perfect for those looking to build their network in this diverse field and find their tribe.

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The Carbon Removal Show: For the audio content consumers among us, this recently launched podcast provides a well rounded background through a traditional podcast interview approach through insightful conversations with academics, policymakers and industry.

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Going deeper…

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CDR Primer: A product of a collaboration between climate renowned philanthropists and the world’s leading experts in all carbon removal pathways, the CDR Primer is the go-to literary material covering the latest in policy and science related to carbon removal. Although technical in parts, for the non-scientists among us, it’ll be invaluable to work through the scattering of equations and absorb the decades of knowledge embedded in this masterpiece.

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This is CDR by the OpenAir Collective: This video series produced by the aforementioned OpenAir Collective offers insights into a wide-ranging collection of carbon removal solutions, often directly from the founders of startups building these solutions. Providing a deep-dive into their approaches and technologies, this video series allows a perspective into the inner workings of building a carbon removal startup unseen elsewhere.   

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Carbon Dioxide Removal Law: A Columbia University project and collaboration between the Law School, Climate School and SIPA Center on Global Energy Policy, this bibliography provides a database in excess of 1000 separate resources covering a host of carbon removal pathways and carbon dioxide utilisation opportunities. It is and will remain the most comprehensive resource covering carbon removal collating the latest and greatest of research and new developments in the field.

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Negative Emission Technologies and Reliable Sequestration: Similar to the CDR Primer, this National Academies of Sciences report provides a comprehensive background into engineered carbon removal approaches, including direct air capture. The 500+ page report remains a seminal document in the field offering a detailed collation of the latest in research by leaders of the carbon removal industry.  

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Honorable (General) Climate Mentions…

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Climate Tech VC: A twice-weekly newsletter covering different themes in the world of climate, alongside the latest in climate tech funding, interviews and job opportunities.

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Bloomberg Green: A daily newsletter crafted by some of the best climate journalists and columnists out there.

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Reversing Climate Change: A podcast hosted by Nori - a carbon removal marketplace, covering everything from regenerative agriculture deep-dives to climate interviews.

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MCJ Podcast: The original content property of Jason Jacobs documenting his climate journey with a host of high-calibre interviews focused on all aspects of tackling climate change.

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Terra.do: A broad-based program into the climate change landscape including hydrogen, the built environment and agriculture, as well as a host for climate focused job fairs (program fees apply, however scholarships are available).

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Bonus:

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Heidi Lim (Chief of Staff @ Twelve) on Chasing a Job with Purpose: For those looking to take the plunge into a more impactful career be it in climate or another field, this is a must read. (Now in audio format too).