By Natasha Martirosian, Researcher on Monitoring, Reporting and Verification, and Flexible Fund Manager
The Oxford dictionary definition of incubate is to keep something warm, allowing it to develop… such as an idea.
The weekend of the Carbon Cleanup Camp was just that – an incubator where 41 professionals from across the greenhouse gas removal (GGR) sector, including the Future Leaders Network (FLN), the CO2RE Hub and the CO2RE Arts initiative, came together and got back to the basics.
The camp wasn’t an easy project to design or deliver, mostly because something like this has not been done before in our field, and never on an actual field. Nature connection is not yet regularly integrated as a tool to accelerate ideas. It was a great experiment thought up by two of our respected CO2RE leaders, Paul Rouse and Richard Templar, both of whom are now retired. We often attend conferences to share knowledge, so this was a new experience: discussing the biggest challenges we face in industry, policy and humanity, while sitting outside on hay bales and grass.
We were asked questions like “What is your favourite thing about living on planet Earth?” and “How do you feel about the climate crisis?”. Our answers were the first step in us letting go of the outside world, our roles and responsibilities, of all that is imposed on us from work and society. Only then could we show up as ourselves, as humans. This was the first step of incubation. Scientists, often pragmatic and logical, allowed themselves to feel the depth of their own experience and express it. Professionals from a variety of sectors found themselves vulnerable, exposed and sometimes even slightly uncomfortable – together. We slowly let our guards down and built community and rapport through sharing plant-based meals and washing up, having morning coffee with endless cafetiere refills at breakfast, and chasing sun.
Our days were packed with team–building and nature connection activities. We were blessed with the brightest minds in carbon removal and a sunny weekend – the driest spring on record (again). Keynote speakers Steve Smith and Nicholas Harrison took us on journeys through their careers, giving us a hindsight perspective. We heard firsthand about the peaks and troughs of careers, earth systems and the field of GGR. The road behind is clearer than the road ahead and looking back can help alleviate some of the feelings of present stagnation or roadblocks.
Tim Kreuger took us forward in time with “cathedral thinking”. A cathedral’s original architects knew they would never see the spire of their designed masterpiece. Often, the design would evolve with technology through the building process. Notre-Dame Cathedral took nearly 200 years to build and was improved and added to for another 100 years afterwards. Some experts in the group suggested that the technologies that will resolve the “carbon problem” have yet to come. We took time to digest the information and then reflect our thoughts and feelings about the concept. Words like ‘storage’, ‘duration’ and ‘loneliness’ passed through conversation as if they had always belonged together. The reality is that, as emissions continue to increase and demands on energy continue to rise, the scale of GGR required to mitigate climate change and stabilise the climate system is much bigger than current estimates. This is not an easy concept to grasp, whether on the grass or in a conference room.
Our discussions and activities were silly, serious, and insightful. We wore colourful hats to convey our identity, discussed what has and hasn’t worked in the industry, and came up with solutions. Breakout sessions took groups on various journeys: a mindful monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) walk; bridging gaps between academia and industry; navigating the carbon dioxide removal (CDR) innovation and funding ecosystem; and dealing with risk in the CDR market. A panel discussion with the CO2RE Artists, “To establish the value of art in, and as, research”, proved insightful and captivating. It highlighted the real gaps in ways of knowing, of research practice, and of how evidence is synthesised into art in different ways than in empirical research. The artists themselves shared their perspectives and processes, giving a unique snapshot of their approaches to the world.
Our “Masterminds & Mentoring” session was the incubator giving birth to ideas, an opportunity to make proposals for support. Individuals pitched ideas, and the rest of the group elected projects they would support based on pitches. Twelve ideas in two sessions were presented and given the opportunity to grow and accelerate. Some of these projects are being further developed because of this session. I wonder what we could do if we had more sessions like this.
The Carbon Cleanup Camp was the last major FLN event funded by CO2RE. As CO2RE’s work finishes up over the next year, it is hoped that the camp can serve as a model for how to successfully strengthen a community of people who are (some of) the architects of the future of humanity.
Photos by Luke Flegg and Khatima Ataye.
