Reversing Climate Change

Are we trying to get parts per million of greenhouse gases down as quickly as possible? Or are also trying to solve the nested problems of fertility, toxicity, and resilience as well as the systems that got us here in the first place? In this episode, I contrast high carbon-efficiency biomass burial approaches (Biomass Carbon Removal and Storage/BiCRS) with biochar and other methods that sacrifice...

Content Warning: this episode discusses suicide in literature, specifically Judas Iscariot from the Gospel and Javert from Les Misérables. Why do this work? You could be doing so many different things. What calls you to it, and what (or who?!) is doing the calling? In today's monologue show, host Ross Kenyon reflects upon the nature of vocation, aesthetics, and what it means to labor at someth...

Are we going to figure out how to get along on a highly stressed planet? Or are we unable to break the patterns that have gotten us here in the first place? Are we too hard-nosed or too woo? A secret third thing?! Today's show features Eugene Kirpichov, founder of Work on Climate, a very popular climate community built to help people transition into climate work. But the longer Eugene stared a...

So many people think they need to dream up wild new tech to be successful at carbon removal. But one of CDR's most ascendent companies is relentlessly simple. They're so linear that I scrambled to make sure I wasn't missing something... In fact, if you've ever received coaching from me about simplicity, this is where I'm sending you from now on. I recently completed Noah Deich...

Are we thinking about biochar financial strategy all wrong? It's not often a good fit for venture capital, but is it actually a great fit for private equity? It might be, at least if you can get the ticket size big enough... Today's guest is Alastair Collier, Chief R&D Officer at A Healthier Earth, a biochar project developer that is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pure DC, a data center...

Some decisions we don't expect to have big consequences. And yet, sometimes you wake up thirty years later in a world deeply altered by that little moment. Today's show is about when that happens in science. Dr. Tyler Kukla is a Research Scientist at CarbonPlan, one of carbon removal's preeminent watchdog nonprofits. He returns to the show to explore how a conservative estimation of ho...

Life gotten harder recently? You must have just leveled up. We all thought we were doing the very hard work necessary to scale carbon removal, but was this ultimately a false peak? When you climb to what you think is the top of the mountain only to find a lot more mountain lurking behind it? Today's show is with Noah Deich, a carbon removal mover and shaker with his thumbprint on many of the b...

The perennial fight returns... In one corner, there are the wizards: optimists who are betting that technology and economic growth can solve our problems faster than it can create them? In the other corner, prophets: who believe we have deeply lost in our way in ignoring limits and that we need to get ourselves back to the garden. How much wizard and how much prophet do you have contained in your...

With a matchup like that, who would win? I love this chapter from Moby-Dick . It so perfectly contrasts sublime beauty of the world and the raw horror of life. I was thinking of it often while on my recent sailing trip aboard the Statsraad Lehmkuhl from Seattle to San Francisco. Sit back and let me read the chapter for you, and may it inspire you to crack open some Herman Melville. Resources ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

It's that special time of year to put away worldly cares and focus on family, giving, and... carbon removal? Did I read that right? Come hang with Ross and CDR force of nature Sebastian Manhart to discuss family, parenthood, hope for the future, the quest to expand the moral sphere, and why we should be focusing on trendlines and not headlines. Happy Holidays, however you choose to spend it! T...

Is the voluntary carbon market a club for saints? Or is it a hospital for sinners? Are we meant to understand all and then to forgive all? How much time are we meant to devote to idealistic abstinence-esque policies for change, and how much of our professional lives should go to harm reduction? Today's show deals with some of the biggest questions in carbon removal and carbon markets, and does...

Gentle wind, sail, and ocean sounds with looped video taken during a trip from Seattle to San Francisco aboard the Statsraad Lehmkuhl for the One Ocean Expedition.

One could fly to the Bay Area in about ninety minutes, but what if it took a week, enormous amounts of teamwork on a 111-year-old Norwegian sailing barque, and caused a near-universal seasickness in thirty-foot seas? Today's show is a monologue about my experience sailing from Seattle to San Francisco on the Statsraad Lehmkuhl for the One Ocean Expedition. I'm an Executive in Residence at...

Long a pariah climate solution, Stratospheric Aerosol Injection (SAI) is having its mainstream moment. As the climate movement ponders the planet's deep overshoot, more conversations about geoengineering, solar radiation management, global cooling, etc. are taking place in the open. Moreover, for-profit entities are raising venture rounds, with Stardust recently announcing a $60M Series A to c...

Wren recently purchased a majority stake in Pacific Biochar, one of carbon removal's most prolific credit deliverers. What led to this deal, and will this model be emulated in a 2026 that might find carbon removal companies interested in (or maybe desperate for) deals that prolong runway and keep their companies alive? Wren is one of the oldest marketplaces (and so much more) in carbon removal...

What if microbes could help us mine responsibly? What if astrobiology—the study of life beyond Earth—held clues for how to fix the way we extract resources  on  Earth? Today’s guest is Liz Dennett, CEO and founder of Endolith, a biotech startup using microbes to boost copper recovery from mining waste. With a PhD in astrobiology, experience at NASA, and a career spanning oil, gas, and data science...

World War I profoundly changed the world. Nation-states replaced empires. Russia went communist. Fascism arrived. The West's claim to being the most civilized peoples on Earth was supremely undermined. And out of so much suffering, we received a holiday prioritizing grief and mercy. This bonus episode is me speed-running World War I and sharing some reflections on Armistice Day, Remembrance Da...

Adaptation begins at home. But it doesn't end there. What do you plan on doing with your family as climate change gets worse? Are you already making plans whether to stay or go? How should states respond as people flee disaster? Who should get access to fish stocks as they migrate to new regions? Once one starts asking these questions, they really don't stop... Today's guest is Susannah Fisher, au...

Is climate change a fringe and woke distraction in military planning that inhibits lethality? Or is it invaluable strategic context for this century's power projection? What kinds of missions will soldiers be asked to perform in a world that is getting hotter and more complex? Today's guest is Erin Sikorsky, Director of The Center for Climate and Security and author of the new book, Climat...

Much of legacy media is dying. You know what isn't? Live sports. Where the outcome is uncertain, people want to watch. That means bringing together large numbers of fans and athletes. And what does that all add up to? Emissions. And emissions that could potentially be detached from profitability, leading to budgets large enough to support meaningful carbon removal. But will sports leagues move in...

What happens when you build a list of very nearly every carbon dioxide removal company in existence? You get access to intriguing data and the pride of a very laborious job done well. Presumably you also get to take a nap. Grant Faber is a long-time carbon removal community fixture working on Life Cycle Analysis and Techno-Economic Assessment. Formerly of the Department of Energy, he now works wit...

I came back from New York Climate Week energized. I loved seeing everyone. But many of the conversations I had profoundly scared me. We're staring into the abyss of deep overshoot, and it's staring back into us. What would it mean for us to make peace with a world that doesn't decarbonize fast enough? That doesn't scale carbon removal before tipping points are reached? That is forced into more rad...

We all want to make sure carbon removal works. But who is working to make it beautiful? And could creating beauty be one of the most important jobs in all of climate? Leila Conners is a filmmaker who has been making environmental films for decades, including legendary ones like The 11th Hour  with Leonardo DiCaprio. Her latest opus is  Legion 44 , which is a wonderful documentary highlighting so m...

Or "project finance", for that matter? Or are these just the current words we say at happy hours? Today, we attempt to nail down some of these definitions so we might have a chance of achieving either of these concepts. Ryan Covington is an attorney and partner in the Climate Projects team of Philip Lee (US) LLP, focused on the development and financing of engineered and nature-based car...

Are you interested in sailing from Seattle to San Francisco on a sailing vessel older than World War 1?! Well, you can at the end of October 2025. Moreover, you'll be crewing alongside me. I recently joined the team of Maritime Blue as an Executive in Residence, working with ocean tech startups on commercial strategy, storytelling, and go-to-market. They're putting on a fabulous ocean conf...