This Is CDR Ep90: Carbon to Sea -- Field-Building for Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement
OpenAir is excited to present This Is CDR, an online event series that explores the wide range of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) solutions currently being researched, developed, and deployed, and discusses them in the context of policies OpenAir seeks to formulate and advance at every level of government in the U.S., as well as in national and subnational jurisdictions globally.
This week we are pleased to welcome Dr. Antonius Gagern and Irene Polyni from Carbon to Sea, the leading initiative to evaluate whether ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) can safely remove and store billions of tonnes of carbon dioxide.
About Antonius:
Dr. Antonius Gagern is the Executive Director at the Carbon to Sea, a non-profit initiative to systematically evaluate the viability of ocean-based CDR pathways. Prior to this, Antonius spent five years building philanthropic strategies to advance ocean CDR, first at CEA Consulting and later as a Director at Additional Ventures, which spun out Carbon to Sea. Before entering the CDR universe, Antonius was a natural resource economist focused on fisheries and marine conservation in the tropics, as well as on climate smart agriculture. Antonius holds degrees in Biology (BSc.), Marine Ecology (MSc.) and Natural Resource Economics (PhD).
About Irene:
Irene Polnyi leads the development of Carbon to Sea’s global field research network. Before joining Carbon to Sea Initiative, Irene served as Executive Director of the Institute for Abundant Oceans, where she led the strategic direction and scientific mandates with Professor Carlos Duarte to unlock new methods to fund and develop blue natural capital. Prior to her work in oceans, Irene co-led a nonprofit accelerator focused on human rights and democracy-building in Southeast Asia and was a management consultant for over 10 years. Irene holds a BS in Economics and Marketing from NYU’s Stern School of Business and lives in Brooklyn, NY.