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Reversing Climate Change

Reversing Climate Change

By: Carbon Removal Strategies LLC
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Reversing Climate Change is a podcast that bridges science, technology, and policy with the richness of the humanities. From the forefront of carbon removal and climatetech to explorations of literature, history, philosophy, theology, and geopolitics, we dive deep into the people, ideas, and innovations shaping a better future for the planet and its inhabitants. If you love the show, please become a paid subscriber on Spotify.Carbon Removal Strategies LLC Philosophy Social Sciences
Episodes
  • 369: I See a Darkness—The Climate Movement Expects Deep Overshoot
    Oct 7 2025
    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 radical geoengineering approaches that may just be one more layer of intervention that we will likely manage just as badly?This is an emotional show. It's about war. It's about the Holocaust. It's about what it means to fail, and to fail gracefully, and how imagining how you would feel if you lost everything can potentially offer an unexpected lightness.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 LLP⁠Become a sponsor by emailing carbon.removal.strategies[at]gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Use this affiliate link to use Descript's transcripting and podcast editing service⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up for the 9Zero climate coworking space with my referral code⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Resources⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Become a paid subscriber of Reversing Climate Change⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to the Reversing Climate Change SubstackThis episode title is a reference to Bonnie "Prince" Billy's excellent song, "I See a Darkness." I enjoy the slow version, but I adore the jauntier one's sense of irony, hope, and despair.The art is William Blake's work on Job.The riding the bomb scene from Dr. StrangeloveThucydides TrapDestined For War: Can America and China Escape Thucydides's Trap by Graham Allison338: Carbon Security and the Geopolitics of Carbon Removal—w/ Sarah GodekThe Avoidable War: The Dangers of a Catastrophic Conflict between the US and Xi Jinping's China is a non-fiction book by Kevin RuddGuns and butter"Ukraine's Zelenskyy issues a stark warning about a global arms race and AI war", NPRCassandraJobEternal returnLiberum Veto330: Frostpunk 2: Climate Video Games and Humane Storytelling at 11 bit studios—w/ Maciej Sulecki of This War of Mine, Frostpunk 1 & 2Ken Krimstein's When I Grow UpBloodlands: Europe Between Hitler and Stalin by Timothy SnyderHasidic JudaismVilna GaonPartitions of PolandMolotov-Ribbentrop PactHolodomorThe RoadThe Bridge on the River Kwai"Life unworthy of life"The unfinished business of ghostsDante's Divine Comedy—both Cantos VI & XVI have this feel"In man's life his time is a mere instant, his existence a flux, his perception fogged, his whole bodily composition rotting, his mind a whirligig, his fortune unpredictable, his fame unclear. To put it shortly: all things of the body stream away like a river, all things of the mind are dreams and delusion; life is warfare, and a visit in a strange land; the only lasting fame is oblivion.What then can escort us on our way? One thing, and one thing only: philosophy. This consists in keeping the divinity within us inviolate and free from harm, master of pleasure and pain, doing nothing without aim, truth, or integrity, and independent of others' action or failure to act. Further, accepting all that happens and is allotted to it as coming from that other source which is its own origin: and at all times awaiting death with the glad confidence that it is nothing more than the dissolution of the elements of which every living creature is composed. Now if there is nothing fearful for the elements themselves in their constant changing of each into another, why should one look anxiously in prospect at the change and dissolution of them all? This is in accordance with nature: and nothing harmful is in accordance with nature."— Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book Two, 17
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    42 mins
  • 368: The World Will Be Saved by Beauty: Carbon Removal's Feature Film Debut, LEGION 44—w/ Leila Conners, filmmaker
    Sep 30 2025
    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 many alumni from this podcast and the CDR industry.We also discuss why the antihero is such a popular archetype, how you should construct your media diet, and the role of the feature film when long-form and short-form content are polarizing media duration.Legion 44 is now available for viewing on its own website and several other places, as well as on Tree+: Leila's new tv channel that you can download right to your smart tv. Please support her work spotlighting climate solutions and the delightful world of carbon removers."The world will be saved by beauty."- Fyodor Dostoyevsky-- Dorothy Day--- Michael Scott (jk... unless?)This Episode's Sponsors⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip Lee LLP: legal resources for carbon removal buyers and suppliers⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Arbonics⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠: forestry project developer in the EU⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to the RCC episode with Lisett Luik from Arbonics⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to the RCC episode with Ryan Covington from Philip Lee LLPBecome a sponsor by emailing carbon.removal.strategies[at]gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Use this affiliate link to use Descript's transcripting and podcast editing service⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up for the 9Zero climate coworking space with my referral code⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Resources⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Become a paid subscriber of Reversing Climate Change⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to the Reversing Climate Change SubstackLeila Conners IMDb⁠⁠Legion 44⁠⁠Tree Media⁠⁠Tree+ tv channel⁠The 11th HourKoyaanisqatsiPhilip Glass's theme from ⁠Koyaanisqatsi⁠Dorothy Day: The World Will Be Saved by Beauty: An Intimate Portrait of My Grandmother is also a lovely book by Kate Hennessy, and also probably what highlighted this beautiful sentiment for me.Ari AsterHereditaryGraham HancockDavid Attenborough
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    49 mins
  • 367: Is CDR Even Using "Bankability" Correctly?—w/ Ryan Covington, Attorney at Philip Lee LLP
    Sep 23 2025

    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 carbon projects. Ryan shares his experience in structuring large financial deals in the carbon removal and climate tech space.

    Can carbon removal ever achieve scale without sufficient commercial finesse? Likely not, but isn't it pretty to think so?

    This Episode's Sponsors

    ⁠⁠⁠⁠Philip Lee LLP: legal resources for carbon removal buyers and suppliers⁠⁠⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Arbonics⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠: forestry project developer in the EU⁠⁠⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Listen to the RCC episode with Lisett Luik from Arbonics⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    Become a sponsor by emailing carbon.removal.strategies[at]gmail.com

    ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Use this affiliate link to use Descript's transcripting and podcast editing service⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Use this affiliate link to use Riverside to record your podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Sign up for the 9Zero climate coworking space with my referral code⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    Resources

    ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Become a paid subscriber of Reversing Climate Change⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

    ⁠⁠⁠Subscribe to the Reversing Climate Change Substack

    J'Accuse...!

    Ryan Covington's profile at Philip Lee LLP

    Philip Lee LLP's Climate Projects page

    The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway

    Midnight in Paris scene with Ernest Hemingway

    "359: Why Is the Pulp and Paper Industry So Great for CDR?—w/ Natalie Khtikian & Jon Rhone, Co-Founders of CO280"

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    54 mins
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