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The Futures Summit highlighted India’s growing role in carbon dioxide removal and its potential for global leadership.
The Futures Summit, attended by CarbonBetter’s Managing Director of Climate Services, Pankaj Tanwar, brought together leaders in carbon dioxide removal (CDR) to establish a shared vision for the future. Led by Sparsh Agarwal and Shrey Agarwal from Alt Carbon, the event marked South Asia’s first CDR conference, featuring discussions in Delhi to educate stakeholders about CDR and build an exciting vision for its future in the Global South and in Darjeeling to dive deep into technical requirements to advance project development. Pankaj participated in a panel on “Client Perspectives for the Global South,” where he and other industry leaders explored the challenges and opportunities in scaling CDR solutions across the region. The event highlighted the growing momentum around CDR in India and the country’s capacity to play a leading role in achieving global carbon removal targets. Our key takeaways from the summit are below.
India and the Global South’s Role have a significant role to play in CDR
These are exciting times for India and the Global South, which are beginning to embrace their role in driving CDR. Multiple startups are actively engaged in developing robust projects across the technology spectrum, including biochar (PyroCCS), enhanced rock weathering (ERW) (Alt Carbon), and afforestation, reforestation, and revegetation (ARR), to name a few.
CDR is also an an Economic Opportunity
CDR presents a tremendous opportunity for India and the Global South to help the world meet the ten gigatons (Gt) per year removal target by 2050 while simultaneously driving significant economic prosperity. Fighting climate change must be integrated with economic development, and implementing CDR projects provides a unique opportunity to achieve both.
“CDR presents a tremendous opportunity for India and the Global South to help the world meet the 10 gigatons per year removal target by 2050, while simultaneously driving significant economic prosperity.”
Pankaj Tanwar, Managing Director of Climate Services
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Learn More about CBCO 22-1India is rapidly developing technical expertise for accurate CDR quantification
In India, organizations are developing deep technical expertise and robust sampling processes to ensure accurate quantification of complex CDR technologies such as ERW. Alt-Carbon's leadership in this area is enabling significant growth, capitalizing on India's natural advantages such as weather, soil types, crop plantations, and climate conditions.
The Role of Government is critical in Supporting CDR Initiatives
The government has begun focusing on driving sustainability across key industrial sectors. However, to unlock local demand and help India achieve its full CDR potential, it needs to provide more support through incentives for implementing novel projects and establishing regulations.
Conclusion
The Futures Summit highlighted the potential for India to become a global leader in CDR, with a strong foundation of technical expertise, natural advantages, and emerging government support. As the nation continues to develop its CDR capabilities, integrating climate action with economic growth will be crucial in meeting both national and global climate goals. The summit served as a call to action for stakeholders to work collaboratively in advancing CDR initiatives, setting the stage for significant progress in the years to come. Thanks once again to Alt Carbon for hosting this inaugural summit and initiating discussions on this important topic.
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The Futures Summit aimed to bring together leaders in the carbon dioxide removal (CDR) space to discuss strategies and technical advancements for scaling CDR solutions. It focused on establishing a unified vision for India's role in driving decarbonization and addressing climate change.
The summit was hosted by Sparsh and Shrey Agarwal from Alt-Carbon and took place across two locations: New Delhi and Darjeeling. The event marked South Asia's first conference dedicated to CDR.
The summit featured discussions on strategic goals for CDR in India, with sessions in Delhi focusing on broader vision-setting and those in Darjeeling exploring the technical requirements for advancing CDR project development. Panel discussions also addressed challenges and opportunities specific to the Global South.
Pankaj Mohan Singh Tanwar, Managing Director of Climate Services at CarbonBetter, participated in a panel discussion titled "Client Perspectives for the Global South." The panel covered topics such as client challenges, local partnerships, and strategies for scaling CDR solutions across the region.
The summit represents a pivotal step in positioning India and the Global South as leaders in CDR. It provided a platform for sharing innovative approaches to carbon removal, fostering collaboration, and driving the region's contribution to global climate goals.
About the Author
Pankaj Tanwar is Managing Director of Climate Services at CarbonBetter. He has experience leading Fortune 100 companies through their sustainability journeys, including sustainability driven growth in the food industry. Pankaj holds an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management and a BTech in Mechanical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur.