Curiosity, Learning, and Dialogue on Greenhouse Gas Removal

Image in header by Woven Ink Studio

By Umme Hani Imani

Despite its rapidly growing influence in climate science and policy, public awareness about Greenhouse Gas Removals (GGR or ‘removals’) remains relatively low. The recently published second edition of the State of Carbon Dioxide Removal Report signals that familiarising members of the public with GGR methods and the scientific, social, and environmental considerations they entail is a promising avenue for ‘informed participation’ and shared knowledge towards ‘developing more effective and responsible’ innovations and policies in the sector. Social scientists at CO2RE emphasize that communications about GGR should go beyond simplistic efforts to ‘minimize opposition’ or ‘maximize approval.’ They instead advocate mutual learning and engagement to critically explore GGR’s potential and limitations as a solution to the climate crisis. 

Forging a link with the creative industry, CO2RE recently undertook two initiatives to share knowledge, spark curiosity, and amplify dialogue about GGR’s role in shaping climate futures. The first initiative, launched in March 2024, was ‘Visions for GGR’, an image competition aimed at creating a visual archive of GGR methods, technologies, and practices. Open to public voting, the competition concluded on 20 June 2024, when we invited members of the local Oxford community – including students, activists, green groups, and creative practitioners, alongside researchers, university staff, and their families – to join us for ‘Goodbye Greenhouse Gas!’ at the Old Fire Station (OFS), a community arts centre in central Oxford.  

The event featured a science and innovation showcase complemented by short documentary film screenings, an ‘Ask Me Anything GGR’ panel with experts, a science slam, an art collage-making activity, and an exhibition of the top 14 entries from Visions for GGR. Planned as an ‘evening of fun and learning’, it offered participants an immersive multi-media and multi-sensory introduction into the world of GGR: hands-on demonstrations allowing them to see, touch, and hear how GGR science works; face-to-face interactions with students, researchers, and industry practitioners who are pioneering innovations and policy development in the UK; and participatory activities encouraging attendees to creatively channel initial feelings and reflections on the possibilities and challenges presented by removals. 

 

The Science and Innovation Showcase 

Animated by conversations between researchers working on a range of interventions in GGR and curious members of the public, the showcase was divided into two parts.  

The first showcase aimed to spotlight emerging research and talent in the field through presentations from doctoral student groups and industry start-ups. 

CarbonWise: One of Imperial College’s doctoral ‘Challenge Teams’, CarbonWise develops visually engaging and accessible interactive explainers to help communicate what GGR is, how it works, and how it is being deployed in the UK. Led by doctoral student Natasha Granville, their presentation included materials representing different GGR approaches, whilst playfully engaging participants in games where they estimated the quantities of carbon different methods can absorb. 

 

OceanBug: Based in the Earth Sciences department at Oxford, OceanBug is a marine biogeochemistry research group. Led by doctoral student Arianwen Herbert, their stall gave participants a microscopic insight into the role of phytoplankton in carbon cycling and sequestration, besides introducing them to the vast potential of marine CO2 removal. 

 

Origen Carbon Solutions: Working to develop and deploy limestone-based direct air capture technologies that permanently remove CO2 from the atmosphere, Origen is emerging as a key industrial actor in the GGR landscape. The start-up was represented by Dr Jack Shield and Dr Olivia Hawrot, who performed a live science experiment to demonstrate how lime carbonation absorbs CO2 from the air. 

 

“I would like to thank all PhD students who have dedicated their time to improving and caring for the future of our planet, always coming up with new ideas to solve real problems.” – Anonymous Attendee

Featuring a mix of experimental demonstrations and storytelling, the second showcase platformed five distinct research areas that CO2RE’s partner projects in the GGR Demonstrators Programme are working on, alongside documentary films on each project.

Enhanced Rock Weathering: Prof Ros Rickaby and Dr Feifei Deng conducted a SodaStream experiment to demonstrate how mixing crushed silicate rocks (i.e. basalt) with soils can help speed up their natural capacity to remove CO2 from the air. This was accompanied by samples of basalt under a microscope and a video explaining other aspects of their research. 

 

The Biochar Demonstrator: Prof Colin Snape, Dr Katja Lehmann, Dr Disni Gamaralalage, and Dr Yuzhuo Tang had participants handle real biochar and ‘listen to the soil’ while explaining the conditions in which its application to soils can facilitate CO2 storage for thousands of years. The team handed each participant a small goody bag of biochar samples to make their contributions to CO2 removal at home.

 

Net Zero Plus: Dr Bertrand Nortier and Dr Hsi-Kai Chou walked participants through the application their project has developed to help policymakers make environmentally responsible and informed decisions about tree-planting activities to support GGR across different regions in the UK. 

 

PBC4GGR: Prof Iain Donnison showed participants diagrams and products derived from perennial biomass crops (i.e. willow and miscanthus) to explain processes through which they can support bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) in the UK. 

 

GGR Peat: Participants had the first-ever chance to watch a film documenting their work to improve peatland management practices and reverse greenhouse gas emissions that result from peatland degradation. 

 

“For the exhibitors, it is very interesting to know what the public thinks about GGR. It is a great opportunity to make GGR knowledge available to the public in a transparent way. I would like to be involved in more of such events.” – Anonymous Exhibitor

 

Q&A, dialogue, and games with the Future Leaders of GGR 

Since this fast-developing area of climate research is characterised by tremendous complexity and uncertainty, many aspects of GGR can be complicated, confusing, and occasionally controversial for members of the public. The ‘Ask Me Anything’ panel, conceived and moderated by Aaron Benjamin of the GGR Future Leaders Network, addressed some of these questions and concerns. The panel shed light on the social, political, and ethical considerations behind ensuring that GGR deployment carries minimum environmental risk and is just and beneficial for the communities it impacts. It was enriched with candid insights from Dr Isabela Butnar, who leads on developing a framework for credible removals at CO2RE; Dr Emily Cox, who is instrumental to CO2RE’s responsible innovation and societal engagement research; and Dr Louisa Brotherson, a Carbon Ratings Scientist at BeZero Carbon.  

Shifting gears in the second half, the FLN closed the evening with fun and banter in a GGR Science Slam planned by Stella Linnekogel. GGR experts competed to pique the audience’s curiosity with accessible, entertaining, and concise pitches for their favourite GGR themes. The audience gathered in groups of five to judge how convinced they were. Buzzing with discussion, debate, and peals of laughter, the room ultimately decided to name Garrett Guard’s act the winner of the show! 

 

Getting Creative and Messy with GGR

Envisioned and facilitated by Jess Harvey and Isolde Godfrey of Woven Ink Studio, the GGR Art Collage was among the evening’s highlights. The artists provided participants with colourful scraps of recycled paper and samplings of miscanthus leaves, dried willow, biochar, and basalt, encouraging them to ponder the knowledge, ideas, questions and curiosities they encountered at the event. Working together, they created a whimsical illustration of the imaginaries and materiality associated with GGR. Watch the timelapse video capturing how they collaboratively transformed a sprawling white surface into a radiant and layered depiction of the thoughts and feelings the evening evoked!

 

Concluding the ‘Visions for GGR’ Image Competition 

A stunning selection of shortlisted photographs and illustrations from the Visions for GGR image competition lit up the OFS Café. Organized in the run-up to the 3rd International Negative CO2 Emissions Conference – hosted by CO2RE in the same week as the public event – the competition concluded that evening. It invited submissions in two categories, with four prizes in each.

1) Capturing GGR – photographs depicting removal methods and practices as they exist or are being developed: 

• • Juried Prize Winner: “Biochar: Halo and Bubble of Life” – Harn Wei Kua, Abhimanyu Goel, Huang Lei 
  • Juried Prize Runner-Up: “Future Leaders and Carbon Catchers: A Snapshot of Progress and Play” – Amy Ruddock 
  • Popular Choice Prize Winner: “For Peat’s Sake” – Anna-Marie Sturrock 
  • Popular Choice Prize Runner-Up: “Greening the Ocean Desert” – Michael Sswat

2) Envisioning GGR – designs, digital art, and illustrations envisioning how climate futures may take shape differently around different approaches to removals: 

• • Juried Prize Winner: “GGR Dream Map” – Sabiha Imani 
  • Juried Prize Runner-Up: “Net Zero” – E West 
  • Popular Choice Prize Winner: “Pathways” – Molly Palmer 
  • Popular Choice Prize Runner-Up: “Carbon Sponges” – Freya Morris

A jury panel assessed all entries and shortlisted 14 for our image archive and public vote. The winners were announced at the conference’s closing plenary on 21 June 2024 where they were invited to share their insights into the contexts, concepts, and processes behind their submissions.