Taking carbon removal mainstream: a conversation with market-shaper Giana Amador
Carbon removal pioneer Giana Amador talks about the role of communications in growing a new climate industry from the ground up.
Giana Amador is a pioneer—though she probably wouldn’t introduce herself that way. Instead, she’d tell you about the moment she and her Carbon180 co-founder, Noah Deich, stumbled upon the concept of carbon removal. Buried hundreds of pages deep in an IPCC report published in 2015, they realized that carbon removal (a set of solutions that removes CO2 from the atmosphere to help address legacy emissions) was a necessary piece of the climate puzzle. And pretty much no one was talking about it. From that moment on, Giana dedicated her career to building an industry through collaborations with scientists, policymakers, and the world’s leading technology innovators – first at Carbon180, the world’s first carbon removal NGO, and now at the Carbon Removal Alliance, an organization bridging the gap between the public sector and carbon removal producers and buyers.
Through her work, Giana has helped grow carbon removal from mere mention to necessary climate solution with billions of dollars of funding for research, development, and deployment. Her groundbreaking work is, in part, a result of her dogged obsession with the impact of carbon on our planet, and how we can reverse that impact through meaningful change. Part of that change relies on clear communication. Giana can’t stop talking about carbon removal. She’s good at it. Her communication creates movement and change. We’re in awe of all that Giana’s done and are thrilled to share her experience here.
Thanks so much for speaking with us. To start, can you share a bit about what drew you to a career in the climate space and how you approached that interest in your education?
I grew up in an agricultural community in the California Central Valley. My hometown is a frontline community — it experiences disproportionate air pollution, severe heat, chemical pollution, and other impacts from decades of industrial and fossil fuel production. Most of my conscious childhood was spent in one of the worst droughts in the history of California. It’s a place where the term climate change isn’t often used, but people there have a very close relationship to its impacts. The entire local economy has been upended by it.
When I went to UC Berkeley, I didn’t know that I wanted to study climate change, but I soon learned a language for what I experienced growing up and was able to connect it to larger systems. More importantly, I became excited and empowered by the potential of climate solutions to not only stave off the worst impacts of climate change, but to also help address some of the other challenges that my community faced like unemployment, education, and inequality.
One thing that was particularly impactful for me was research I did with Jonas Meckling on the concept of green industrial policy. The basic premise revolves around creating new industries that “win” from climate change — the more you create winners from industry-specific incentives and community- and people-centered policies, the greater political will you build in favor of climate change. (Robinson Meyer has my favorite explainer on this.) It felt like a blueprint for how we solved the political climate stalemate that was looming in 2015.
What originally sparked your idea for Carbon180? And how did you decide to make the leap and start something of your own?
Carbon180 was born out of very wonky climate math and, in particular, the publication of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Fifth Assessment report that was published in 2015. Buried more than 500 pages deep in that report, there was a hidden assumption that we would remove carbon on a massive scale as part of our climate strategy. This was a shocking revelation for me. At the time, climate change was considered really only an energy problem. After four years of education and work on climate change, I had not heard even one mention of carbon removal.
In our first year, we had over 600 conversations with climate experts from across academia, philanthropy, policy, major private companies, investors, and environmental NGOs. From these conversations, it was not only clear that the world’s foremost experts on climate knew very little about carbon removal, but also that no one else was going to work on this. And in response to that, we decided to launch Carbon180. I was particularly excited about the blank space that carbon removal presented: an opportunity to shape a new set of climate solutions.
In our first year, we had over 600 conversations with climate experts from across academia, philanthropy, policy, major private companies, investors, and environmental NGOs. From these conversations, it was not only clear that the world’s foremost experts on climate knew very little about carbon removal, but also that no one else was going to work on this.
On a more personal note, at this time I was about to graduate from UC Berkeley and I was increasingly discouraged by the employment opportunities in the environmental field. Large, incumbent environmental organizations were bureaucratic and slow moving. Many environmental NGOs were (and still are) unjust places to work, capitalizing on their mission-driven work to justify low pay and poor work-life balance. Many are also overwhelmingly white and male and often don’t center the perspectives of marginalized communities that are most impacted by climate change. We started Carbon180 with the ethos of wanting to create a more progressive workplace. We used to say our goal was “creating the best place to work on climate”. There is a lot we learned in the process and a lot of work we need to do to continue to do better, but I am very proud of what we built.
You’ve played a critical role in establishing and advancing the public conversation about carbon removal through both Carbon180 and now at your current venture Carbon Removal Alliance. How has your view on the importance of communications and storytelling evolved since you first started Carbon180?
Communications has been absolutely essential to our impact at both Carbon180 and the Carbon Removal Alliance. When we started Carbon180, our goal was to cement carbon removal as a core pillar of climate action, alongside emissions reductions and climate adaptation. This meant imagining ways to translate the uber-technical climate math into simple, resonant messages — all from scratch. It included conjuring up fun analogies, like the carbon removal bathtub which has gone through many iterations from MS paint to sad polar bear, and finally, to a proper Vox explainer. Our goal at that point was to improve the knowledge and accessibility of information on carbon removal. We invested an outsized amount of our operating budget into communications — building fact sheets, newsletters, and infographics that made Carbon180 the go-to source for information on carbon removal.
When we started Carbon180, our goal was to cement carbon removal as a core pillar of climate action, alongside emissions reductions and climate adaptation. This meant imagining ways to translate the uber-technical climate math into simple, resonant messages — all from scratch.
Over the past 8 years, we’ve seen a sea change in the carbon removal field. The need for carbon removal has become more clear and more central to our climate roadmap, federal investments in carbon removal have skyrocketed, and we’ve seen a huge influx of companies developing cutting edge climate solutions. Much of this has been a result of strong communications, and ultimately, the ability to capture the hearts and minds of key decision makers across the US.
Can you describe how you think about the importance of storytelling to an organization like Carbon Removal Alliance, which is working to develop a market for an entirely new industry?
The success of the Carbon Removal Alliance hinges on our ability to tell an honest story about the future of the carbon removal industry. It’s a tough challenge — we have to balance the potential economic opportunity of the field (hello, trillions of dollars!) with its nascency; highlight the real-world projects being deployed today, while being honest about how much we don’t know.
I firmly believe that the next generation of carbon removal storytelling needs to move from infographic to reality, from educational to inspirational. With roughly only 10,000 tons of permanent carbon removal delivered as of 2021, much of the public has had little to no direct contact with carbon removal projects. Our job at the Carbon Removal Alliance is to tell the real stories of entrepreneurs who are working to commercialize these technologies, as well as the stories of communities reaping the job and other benefits of carbon removal projects. Telling these more human stories can help us better shape the future of carbon removal and build political will for action.
I firmly believe that the next generation of carbon removal storytelling needs to move from infographic to reality, from educational to inspirational.
Can you think of any specific examples of a media result that’s had an outsized impact on driving influence for your organization? Have there been any instances of notable or influential people in your industry reaching out due to a particular media result?
Media has been central to our impact at both Carbon180 and the Carbon Removal Alliance. News stories are most people’s first touchpoint with carbon removal and with us. I have gotten significant inbounds from policymakers, investors, and philanthropists based on media coverage. Our very first funder at Carbon180, Incite, found us through an article published by The Verge back in 2015 (We were called the Center for Carbon Removal back then!).
What’s your favorite climate-friendly habit?
Purchasing secondhand is one of my favorite ways to reduce my climate impact. I grew up going to antique stores and garage sales and have a self-proclaimed sixth sense when it comes to finding deals on furniture and home goods. There’s so much to love about purchasing secondhand — the hunt is gratifying, you can find more unique, quality pieces at a fraction of the cost, and you’re reducing the amount of energy, emissions, and water that would have been used to create new furniture. I’ve managed to furnish the vast majority of my apartment through Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace. I love that each piece has a story behind it — my latest find is a bright red Eames Soft Pad office chair that was rescued from a closing NYC advertising agency in the 90s.
Who do you admire most in our industry? Why?
Cheating a bit, but I prefer to define “our industry” broadly because climate change really touches all sectors of our economy. Lately, I’ve been so impressed with Charlotte Palermino, CEO and co-founder at Dieux. Beyond developing incredible skincare products, Charlotte uses her platform to discuss how climate change, sexism, racism, consumerism, and media intersect with the beauty industry. There are a few things I really admire: First, her work is science-backed. The climate-optimal solution is not always straightforward. Many brands make sustainability claims, but often fall back on buzzwords, greenwashing, and fearmongering — often resorting to the most simple marketing claim rather than digging into data-driven solutions. Charlotte’s explainer on refillable packaging (part 1, part 2) is a great example of this. Second, she also approaches the work with a lens of transparency and learning. Charlotte has talked a lot about their process — lessons they’ve learned, roadblocks they’ve experienced, and what they’d do differently in the future. Sustainability is a journey and will require a lot of evolution. The company has even committed to bi-quarterly reviews of their packaging to stay up to date with the latest innovations in sustainability. It’s inspiring to see that kind of honesty and authenticity. We don’t have all the answers today and that’s okay!
Sustainability is a journey and will require a lot of evolution.
(Water) Cooler Talk
💨 Emissions Be Gone
Carbon removal is moving from big idea to real-world impact. And the U.S. government is getting involved. It’s a big deal. This is the first time any government anywhere has taken up the issue. And they’re putting their money where their mouth is.🚧 Hard Hats
We’ve got cement on our minds—and we’re not the only ones. The impact of building materials like steel and cement on our environment is huge, producing dangerous emissions when made, laid and at end-of-life. There is a groundswell of companies looking for solutions to our cement problem and communication about the impact of these solutions will be core to its success.👶 The Kids Are (Will Be?) Alright
Not much more to say about this: it’s awesome. Let’s keep the kids kidding for years to come. Another positive? Despite the current economic climate, many VCs are still funding climate innovation, which means (we hope) bigger impact on future generations.