Reversing Climate Change

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!This Episode's Sponsors⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Absolute Climate:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ the only standard that’s developed independent of registries⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip Lee LLP: legal resources for carbon removal buyers and suppliers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to the RCC episode with Peter Minor from Absolute Climate⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to the RCC episode with Ryan Covington from Philip Lee LLP⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Resources⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Become a paid subscriber of Reversing Climate Change⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to the Reversing Climate Change SubstackSebastian Manhart's websiteCarbonfutureGigaten newsletterLeila Conner's video podcast of Gigaten with Sebastian Manhart⁠"368: The World Will Be Saved by Beauty: Carbon Removal's Feature Film Debut, LEGION 44—w/ Leila Conners, filmmaker"Tree MediaLegion 44CDRJobsDeutscher Verband für negative Emissionen e.V. (DVNE): one of the many trade organizations for CDR Sebastian has been a major part ofCDR Policy ScoopSebastian Manhart's LinkedIn post about the 5% max of international credits that may potentially be used for European carbon compliance"The Monkey's Paw" article on TvTropesPet Sematary

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 it in just the kind of literary-philosophical ways that make this shows its own... whatever it is that it is.Trust me and I'll guide you through the history of the Soviet Union and at least one Warsaw Pact country, David Simon, critical theory, German nuclear policy, the Bill Gates piece that ruffled all feathers one way or another, the Enabled Emissions Campaign, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Vasily Grossman, I Heart Huckabees, and Bicycle Thieves.Some days you hit record and you never quite know what you're going to discover...N.B. The image today is Vaclav Havel's greengrocer from "The Power of the Powerless" as illustrated by his Czech compatriot, Josef Lada, who did the original illustrations for Jaroslav Hašek's incredibly funny,The Good Soldier Švejk, who is a sort of antiwar/pacifistic Amelia Bedelia who messes things up in the Army by being a bit too literal and a bit too eager to follow orders.This Episode's Sponsors⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Absolute Climate:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ the only standard that’s developed independent of registries⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip Lee LLP: legal resources for carbon removal buyers and suppliers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to the RCC episode with Peter Minor from Absolute Climate⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to the RCC episode with Ryan Covington from Philip Lee LLP⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Resources⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Become a paid subscriber of Reversing Climate Change⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to the Reversing Climate Change SubstackThe Good Soldier Švejk by Jaroslav HašekKhrushchev ThawThe Death of Stalin filmVaclav Havel"The Power of the Powerless" by Vaclav Havel; it's abridged here but you can click through to the full thing if you'd likeDeirdre McCloskey"The Clash of Aristocratic and Bourgeois Virtues in 'The Wire'" by Dr. Bart WilsonThe WireGreat PurgeHolodomor (the Ukrainian Famine)Katyn Massacre (NSFW: death pit image is first thing on Wikipedia)"The Society of the Spectacle" by Guy DebordJean Baudrillard"Three tough truths about climate" by Bill GatesGermany closing nuclear power plantsEnabled Emissions CampaignAlexander SolzhinitsynVasily GrossmanEverything Flows by Vasily GrossmanI Heart HuckabeesBicycle Thieves

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 Maritime Blue, which sponsored this leg of the trip to raise awareness of the challenges facing the world ocean, its many inhabitants, and ourselves.The show is about many of the practicalities of living and working among one hundred other scientists and sailors, but it's also about so much more. It's about anxiety, proximity to nature, and a reminder that humans aren't always in charge. And that also, sometimes you don't have to do the thing you really don't want to do, and why that might just be okay.This Episode's Sponsors⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Absolute Climate:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ the only standard that’s developed independent of registries⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip Lee LLP: legal resources for carbon removal buyers and suppliers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to the RCC episode with Peter Minor from Absolute Climate⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to the RCC episode with Ryan Covington from Philip Lee LLP⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Resources⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Become a paid subscriber of Reversing Climate Change⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Statsraad LehmkuhlOne Ocean ExpeditionMaritime BlueThe Essentials Of Living Aboard A Boat: The definitive Guide for Liveaboards by Mark NicholasJohn Kretschmer Sailing"S2E33: Sailing in the age of climate change—w/ John Kretschmer, author and sailor"Zorba the Greek by Nikos KazantzakisHomerThe Annapolis Book of Seamanship by John RousmaniereUniversity of Washington School of OceanographyKarl Ove KnausgårdBrunost: the brown cheese of NorwaySailing La Vagabonde

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 commercialize their approach to SAI. This moment is feeling genuinely new, and it feels this way to today's guest Dr. Shuchi Talati of The Alliance for Just Deliberation on Solar Geoengineering too.While I believe we should do the research and have the governance ready for possible future deployment lest it be done in a much less responsible way (I do not enjoy writing these words one single bit), I am finding it hard to accept its use as anything less than tragedy. Some felt this way about carbon removal, and I have greater sympathy for that feeling now too. The owl of Minerva flies only at dusk...Is SAI an instance of brave humans deploying life-saving technology? Or Promethean hubris for which we should keep our livers guarded? How much should the profit motive influence SAI deployment, if at all? I don't have all of the answers—nor pretend to–but I can point you to the emotional and spiritual core of it that helps me make sense of being a historical actor with agency at this moment in time.This Episode's Sponsors⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Absolute Climate:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ the only standard that’s developed independent of registries⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip Lee LLP: legal resources for carbon removal buyers and suppliers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to the RCC episode with Peter Minor from Absolute Climate⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to the RCC episode with Ryan Covington from Philip Lee LLP⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Resources⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Become a paid subscriber of Reversing Climate Change⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Alliance for a Just Deliberation on Solar Geoengineering"S3E56: Could there be a just solar geoengineering?—w/ Shuchi Talati, Founder of The Alliance for a Just Deliberation on Solar Geoengineering""I See a Darkness—The Climate Movement Expects Deep Overshoot"Stratospheric aerosol injection on WikipediaStardust Solutions, a Geoengineering Startup, Raises $60 Million to Build a Solar-Reflecting System by 2030 on HeatmapLichen VenturesMan's Search for Meaning by Viktor FranklTragic triadDwight D. Eisenhower's Chance for Peace speech⁠"There is only one thing I dread: not to be worthy of my sufferings."- Fyodor Dostoyevsky“Let us first ask ourselves what should be understood by “a tragic optimism.” In brief it means that one is, and remains, optimistic in spite of the “tragic triad,” … a triad which consists of … (1) pain; (2) guilt; and (3) death. This … raises the question, How is it possible to say yes to life in spite of all that?  How … can life retain its potential meaning in spite of its tragic aspects? After all, “saying yes to life in spite of everything,” …presupposes that life is potentially meaningful under any conditions, even those which are most miserable. And this in turn presupposes the human capacity to creatively turn life’s negative aspects into something positive or constructive. In other words, what matters is to make the best of any given situation. … hence the reason I speak of a tragic optimism … an optimism in the face of tragedy and in view of the human potential which at its best always allows for: (1) turning suffering into a human achievement and accomplishment; (2) deriving from guilt the opportunity to change oneself for the better; and (3) deriving from life’s transitoriness an incentive to take responsible action."- Viktor Frankl in the postscript to Man's Search for Meaning"Every gun that is made, every warship launched, every rocket fired signifies, in the final sense, a theft from those who hunger and are not fed, those who are cold and are not clothed."- Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Chance for Peace speech