Plan Sea: Ocean Interventions to Address Climate Change

This episode of Plan Sea was recorded live at the Ocean Visions Biennial Summit 2025, and features conversations with experts from Ocean Visions, UArctic, and WHOI to discuss their work in the ocean-climate nexus. Host Anna Madlener is joined again by special co-host, Danny Gawlowski, Carbon to Sea's Senior Manager of Communications and Policy. Listen to Part One of Plan Sea's coverage of the Ocean Vision Biennial here.Guests on this episode include: Nikhil Neelakantan, Senior Program Officer at Ocean VisionsMarianne Hagen, Co-lead of Seabed Curtain Project at UArctic Frozen Arctic Conservation NetworkKilaparti (Rama) Ramakrishna, Director of Marine Policy Center and Senior Advisor to the President on Ocean and Climate Policy at Woods Hole Oceanographic InstitutionDavid Koweek, Chief Scientist at Ocean VisionsPlan Sea is a semi-weekly podcast exploring ocean-based climate solutions, brought to you by the Carbon to Sea Initiative & the American University Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal.

This episode of Plan Sea was recorded live at the Ocean Visions Biennial Summit 2025, and features conversation with Ocean Visions CEO Brad Ack and other attendees to discuss their work in ocean-based carbon dioxide removal (oCDR). Host Anna Madlener is joined by a special co-host, Danny Gawlowski, Carbon to Sea's Senior Manager of Communications and Policy.Guests on this episode include: Brad Ack, CEO of Ocean VisionsMarc von Keitz, Director at The Grantham Foundation for the Protection of the EnvironmentMariam Swaleh, Assistant Registrar of Research and Grants at Technical University of Mombasa, Team Lead at Ocean-Climate Innovation Hub Kenya, and OCI Fellow at the Global Ecosystem of Ocean SolutionsLily Schacht, Senior Carbon Removal Verification Engineer at 350SolutionsMeg Chadsey, Carbon Specialist at Washington Sea GrantPlan Sea is a semi-weekly podcast exploring ocean-based climate solutions, brought to you by the Carbon to Sea Initiative & the American University Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal.

In this edition of Plan Sea, hosts Anna Madlener and Wil Burns are joined by Drs. Sara Seck and Neil Craik to discuss the current governance and public funding landscape for ocean-based carbon dioxide removal (oCDR) research and innovation in Canada. They focus particularly on jurisdictional challenges in Nova Scotia, related to an increase in oCDR R&D in the province over recent years, and discuss broadly how to strengthen future policymaker and public engagement.Sara Seck is a Professor of Law at Dalhousie University's Schulich School of Law, serving as the Yogis and Keddy Chair in Human Rights Law and the Director of the Marine & Environmental Law Institute. Dr. Seck sheds light on the complex and overlapping jurisdiction of land and ocean rights in Canada. She shares insights for oCDR stakeholders seeking to navigate this landscape to address permitting and other governance issues in coordination with the federal Canadian government, provincial governments, and First Nations leadership. Neil Craik is a Professor at the University of Waterloo, with appointments to the Basillie School of International Affairs (BSIA) and the School of Environment, Enterprise, and Development. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Centre for International Governance Innovation and Co-Lead of the Environment and Resources Research Cluster at the BSIA. Dr. Craik discusses legislation and public funding opportunities that can help support oCDR initiatives in Canada. He also explains current procurement strategies for carbon credits across both the public and private sectors, and how oCDR can work towards compliance to access this market in the future. During the episode, the Plan Sea guests and hosts consider the implications of good governance and policy on advancing the development and funding of oCDR initiatives. The oCDR field is reaching a pivotal moment, with many research projects now moving towards real-world field trials that will answer key scientific questions but also raise new challenges for navigating existing and emerging legislation. Doubling-down on public engagement and unlocking new funding opportunities will be increasingly important for advancing oCDR activities in Canada and elsewhere.ACRONYMS / CONCEPTS:CDR: Carbon Dioxide Removal mCDR: Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal MRV: Measurement, Reporting, and Verification BBNJ Agreement: Agreement on Marine Biodiversity of Areas beyond National JurisdictionTCA: Transforming Climate Action Research ProgramPlan Sea is a semi-weekly podcast exploring ocean-based climate solutions, brought to you by the Carbon to Sea Initiative & the American University Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal.

In this episode of Plan Sea, hosts Anna Madlener and Wil Burns are joined by several guests to discuss new initiatives to improve data management and transparency in the carbon dioxide removal (CDR) industry. Jacki Long is an ocean scientist and co-founder of Submarine Scientific, a scientific consulting company focused on ocean modeling, expert verification support, and system wide strategy development for ocean-based carbon dioxide removal (oCDR). Jacki joins the Plan Sea hosts to discuss Submarine's work pioneering a new initiative to standardize emerging data from ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) field trials. In collaboration with Carbon to Sea and the National Ocean Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Submarine's data protocol is undergoing an open comment period through March 7th, allowing researchers, partners, and community members to submit feedback. Brad Rochlin and Tannis Thorlakson join to discuss their work at Cascade Climate, a philanthropically-backed nonprofit working to accelerate natural climate interventions such as enhanced rock weathering (ERW). Brad and Tannis share insights from Cascade's development of a data quarry method that could fill an important gap in existing carbon data quantification methods — and ultimately unlock greater scientific understanding of ERW.During the episode, the guests and hosts consider how these data standardization and sharing efforts — across the OAE and ERW fields — are laying the foundation for enhanced research efficiency and increasing public trust in CDR methods as potentially viable solutions to slow the impacts of climate change. The ongoing work from Submarine Scientific and Cascade Climate aim to help researchers share learnings in real time, improve collaboration, and support data transparency. ACRONYMS / CONCEPTS:CDR - carbon dioxide removalERW - enhanced rock weatheringOAE - ocean alkalinity enhancementIP - intellectual property (29:38) NOAA - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (38:28)CDRXIV (pronounced “see-dee archive”) (38:46)Hourglass (Listen to a previous episode here) (38:53)R&D - research & development (43:43)Plan Sea is a semi-weekly podcast exploring ocean-based climate solutions, brought to you by the Carbon to Sea Initiative & the American University Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal.

Hey listeners, we want to hear from you! What 2024 milestone in the world of carbon removal should we be celebrating? And what do you hope to see in the marine CDR field in 2025? Leave us a quick voice message at www.speakpipe.com/planseapodcast It only takes a few seconds, and you could be featured in our next episode. Thanks, and happy new year! Plan Sea is a semi-weekly podcast exploring ocean-based climate solutions, brought to you by the Carbon to Sea Initiative & the American University Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal.

This new episode features two OAE researchers and their insights from conducting field research as well as a special request to you, our listeners! In this edition of Plan Sea, hosts Anna Madlener and Wil Burns are joined by two leading ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) researchers: Dr. Jaimie Palter from the University of Rhode Island's School of Oceanography and Dr. Dariia Atamanchuk from Dalhousie University's Department of Oceanography. Palter and Atamanchuk both lead field research sites studying OAE and are part of Carbon to Sea's Field Research Steering Committee. Palter and Atamanchuk discuss their work leading field research sites studying OAE in coastal lagoon and ocean harbor settings, respectively, and share initial findings. The Plan Sea hosts and this episode's guests underscore the importance of field research guiding the recommendation for scientifically robust, yet affordable and actionable monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) processes, and encourage greater collaboration between projects and across the sector.Also: we would like to hear from you, our listeners, before our next episode! Let us know what 2024 milestone we should be celebrating or what you hope to see in 2025 by leaving us a voice message here that may be used in our next episode!Acronyms used throughout the episode: NOAA NOPP –  National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Oceanographic Partnership Program (1:47) AGU - American Geophysical Union (2:00)MRV - Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (13:25)pCO2 - Partial pressure of carbon dioxide (34:58)EPA - Environmental Protection Agency (56:27)Plan Sea is a semi-weekly podcast exploring ocean-based climate solutions, brought to you by the Carbon to Sea Initiative & the American University Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal.

In this edition of Plan Sea, hosts Anna Madlener and Wil Burns are joined by Captura CEO Steve Oldham to discuss Direct Ocean Capture technology. Captura is a Pasadena, CA-based company that is exploring the use of renewable energy to remove carbon from the ocean as a low-cost, large-scale climate solution.Learn more about Captura's DOC approach and propriety technology on their website here. Listen to our previous episode with Banyu Carbon's Co-Founder & CEO Alex Gagnonon here.Acronyms used throughout the episode:DAC - Direct Air Capture (6:38)RD&D - Research, Development, and Demonstration (21:21)KPIs - Key Performance Indicators (22:17)MRV - Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (35:34)Plan Sea is a semi-weekly podcast exploring ocean-based climate solutions, brought to you by the Carbon to Sea Initiative & the American University Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal.

In this edition of Plan Sea, hosts Anna Madlener and Wil Burns are joined by returning guest Mike Kelland, CEO and co-founder of Planetary Technologies, as well as Dr. Will Burt, Planetary's Chief Ocean Scientist. Planetary is an ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) startup based in Halifax, Canada.Link to Planetary's webinar on recent trial results here. Listen to our first episode with Mike Kelland here. ACRONYMS / CONCEPTS:NOAA (19:39): National Oceanographic and Atmospheric AssociationMRV (32:39): Monitoring, Reporting and VerificationROMS (34:35): Regional Ocean Modeling SystemEPA (53:06): Environmental Protection AgencyLondon Convention and Protocol (53:41)Plan Sea is a semi-weekly podcast exploring ocean-based climate solutions, brought to you by the Carbon to Sea Initiative & the American University Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal.

In today's episode, hosts Anna Madlener and Wil Burns are joined by Grace Andrews from Hourglass Climate. They discuss Hourglass' work on environmental monitoring and carbon removal quantification of Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement (OAE)  trials as a research non-profit.To view the Ocean Visions webinar referenced on the podcast, click here: LINK.Acronyms:MRV (1:42) mCDR (3:28)USGS (18:51)EPA (19:32)NOAA (20:51)LCA (23:09)pCO2 (25:02)Plan Sea is a semi-weekly podcast exploring ocean-based climate solutions, brought to you by the Carbon to Sea Initiative & the American University Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal.

In this edition of Plan Sea, hosts Anna Madlener and Wil Burns discuss a novel sunlight-driven approach to marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) with Alex Gagnon, co-founder and CEO of Banyu Carbon, a direct ocean removal startup based in Seattle, WA.

Hosts Anna Madlener and Wil Burns discuss the evolving landscape of marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) with Rory Jacobson, Acting Division Director for Carbon Dioxide Removal at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

Plan Sea dives into the world of carbon removal certification, joined by experts Sophie Gill, Jing He, and Jennifer Yin from Isometric — a carbon credit certification platform and registry focused on high-quality carbon removal.

Carbon to Sea & the American University Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal announce a new collaboration for the second season of “Plan Sea” — a semi-weekly podcast exploring ocean-based climate solutions. Plan Sea will release episodes on a semi-weekly basis throughout Fall 2024, and is hosted by Wil Burns and Anna Madlener.

Our guests today, Lennart Bach, at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies, University of Tasmania, and Veronica Tamsitt, Head of Oceanography at the mCDR MRV company, Submarine, are two of the authors of a very interesting research article recently published in the journal Global Biogeochemical Cycles, titled “Identifying the Most (Cost-)Efficient Regions for CO2 Removal With Iron Fertilization in the Southern Ocean.” Ocean Iron Fertilization (OIF) is really the “OG” of marine-based CDR approaches, with the Ocean Iron Hypothesis being advanced by oceanographer John Martin in the 1980s, and 13 field experiments ensuing over the course of two decades, beginning in 1993, with the last experiment conducted in 2009. It's fair to say that interest in OIF largely fell into abeyance for a protracted period of time. However, recently, largely due to the efforts of researchers at Woods Hole, including Ken Buesseler, who we interviewed on a previous episode, as well as a spate of recent high-profile publications, OIF seems to be front and center again in the discussion of mCDR methods.In this episode we discuss some of the most pertinent issues to assessing the potential role of OIF in a marine CDR portfolio, including costs, risks, and legal considerations. We hope this interview can do justice to some of the article's most important conclusions.

Our guest today is Freya Chay, Carbon Removal Program Lead at CarbonPlan, a non-profit organization in the US working on data and science for climate action by improving the transparency and scientific integrity of climate solutions with open data and tools. Carbon Plan and Freya have produced a number of stellar publications and tools, widely regarded in the field and insightfully crafted. Notably, the CDR primer is a bibliography of crucial concepts to understand if one wants to enter the world of CDR. Similarly, the CDR Verification Framework is an insightful and informative tool to explore detailed layers of CDR approaches.In this episode, we discuss Freya's perspective on barriers to scaling, market responsibilities and market-shaping opportunities. We also discuss uncertainty and opportunities in Monitoring, Reporting and Verification. 

Welcome back to the Plan Sea Podcast as we kick off our final stretch of season 1. Today's episode focuses on the findings and observations in a recently published paper in the Journal of Environmental Science and Policy entitled Towards just, responsible, and socially viable carbon removal: lessons from offshore DACCS research for early-stage carbon removal projectsWe welcome the paper's coauthors Sara Nawaz, Director of Research at the Institute of Carbon Removal, Law and Policy, and Terre Satterfield, Professor of Culture, Risk and Environment at the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability, University of British Columbia to the episode.  

Dr. Matt Eisaman and Frances Simpson-Allen join Plan Sea to discuss Ebb Carbon's marine carbon dioxide removal approach and their latest developments. Matt is a cofounder and Chief Scientist as well as Associate Professor at Yale University in the Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences and the Yale Center for Natural Carbon Capture (YCNCC). Frances is their Director for Policy and Market Development. We discuss the necessity of field trials, challenges on their path to scaleup, as well as very importantly the relevance and importance of social engagement strategies. Particularly, we converse about Ebb's most recent public-private partnerships and plans for the upcoming year. As always, we also dive into the world of regulation and policy and how that interacts with Ebb's approach and operation.  

Today's guest is David Koweek, who holds a PhD from Stanford University in Earth System Science and is currently the Chief Scientist of Ocean Visions, a non-profit organization comprised of a network of leading universities and oceanographic research institutions and partners. Ocean Visions works to engage and focus resources from across this network for concerted action, catalyzing collaboration for the co-design, development, testing, and evaluation of solutions to the interlocking ocean-climate crisis.David tells us about Ocean Vision's general work and thematic pillars. In particular, we discuss the importance of field trials in order for scaleup of mCDR approaches, as well as what is currently hindering scaling generally.  As we navigate these different thematic focus points, David presents Ocean Vision's amazing resources such as the Launchpad Program, CDR Roadmaps, and their curate CDR Community. Finally, David also sheds light on the important work they are doing on an international stage at the United Nations. We hope you enjoy this episode! Launchpad Program: https://oceanvisions.org/launchpad/CDR Roadmaps: https://www2.oceanvisions.org/roadmaps/CDR Community: https://community.oceanvisions.org/

Dr. Ken Buesseler, senior scientist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, joins us to discuss new perspectives and opportunities of ocean iron fertilization (OIF) as a carbon removal solution.Ken explores with us how the journey of OIF has evolved as one of the first researched carbon removal solutions from about a decade ago to today. We discuss what OIF is, what the new effort  ExOIS, Exploring Ocean Iron Solutions, entails and why it is important for the development of OIF. We discuss the history of OIF as well as how new technology development could help answer some of those early risks, including progress on the front of monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) of both carbon and environmental parameters. Learn more about ExOIS: https://oceaniron.org/

Today's episode features three representatives of the SEAO2-CDR project, a European effort to determine strategies for the evaluation and assessment of ocean based carbon dioxide removal. The project's aims range from a strongly interdisciplinary background and focus not only on scientific, but also economic, legal, political, social and ethical  aspects.We are joined by the project's Scientific and Technical Lead, Dr. Christopher Pearce from the National Oceanography Center in the UK.Dr Christine Merk of the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, who co-leads WP4 Understanding public and stakeholder perceptions. Dr Patricia Grasse, University of Leipzig and GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research, who leads WP7 Integrated assessment of ocean-based CDR deployment. The project is funded through the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 101081362. 

This episode's guests are Jean-Pierre Gattuso, CNRS research professor at Sorbonne University and Institute on Sustainable Development and International Relations, France, and Chair for Ocean Acidification and other ocean changes – Impacts and Solutions at Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation; and Andreas Oschlies, professor and head of the biogeochemical modeling research unit at GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research in Kiel, Germany.Together they have led a crossdisciplinary, international research effort to produce a Best Practice Guide for Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement. The currently published pre-print of the guide consists of 13 chapters, written by 50+ scientific co-authors and covering all the relevant approaches available for ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) as a Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) approach. The chapters' topics range from covering current knowledge of the individual approaches and scientific uncertainties as well as recommendations for responsible research and innovation, public engagement, data reporting and sharing, and monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV).Read each individual chapter and provide comments on the OAE Best Practice Guide website. 

Rose Sharifian, CTO of the Dutch startup SeaO2, joins Plan Sea to talk about their electrochemical ocean carbon capture approach. Rose, Anna and Wil discuss SeaO2's technical roadmap, electrochemical membrane technology as well as challenges and opportunities they are facing in the European CDR market. Rose also shares how SeaO2 fits into the global picture of marine CDR startups and why she believes they are amongst the furthest in their development. Learn more about SeaO2 on https://www.seao2.nl/.

Mike Kelland, CEO and co-founder of Planetary Technologies, an ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) startup from Canada, joins Plan Sea on this new episode. Mike, Anna and Wil discuss the basics, science and challenges surrounding ocean alkalinity enhancement — a method whereby the capacity of ocean water to draw down additional CO2 from the atmosphere is increased by increasing the alkalinity of this water. The better part of this episode focuses on the most recent challenges of Planetary around their community engagement and their first planned pilot site in Cornwall, UK. Mike shares learnings, insights and future outlook on the research needed for OAE to reduce uncertainties. Some more resources to learn about OAE and Planetary:Planetary website Details about the Cornwall pilotCarbon Removal Newsroom with Will Burt, Head of Ocean Science and Pete Chargin, VP of Commercialization and Community RelationsThe Ocean Embassy at the Ocean Visions summit, featuring Will Burt on Monitoring, Reporting and VerificationThe Ocean Embassy with Dr. Lennart Bach: What is Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement?

Our guest, Lisa Levin, is a distinguished professor at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the lead author of a recent article in the journal Science called "Deep Sea Impacts of Climate Interventions." She explains that most ocean-based carbon removal technologies involve dumping materials and carbon into the ocean floor, which could affect the many different ecosystems of the deep sea. The deep sea is vast and full of biodiversity, which plays a critical role in regulating the planet's climate and maintaining its health. Lisa identifies the risks associated with ocean-based climate interventions, such as changing the light regime and adding particles or nutrients to the ocean, which could have negative consequences for deep-sea ecosystems.

Matthew Long joins Wil Burns and Anna Madlener to discuss his role at the National Center for Atmospheric Research: Climate and Global Dynamics and the Cworthy project, a non-profit research organization to develop the scientific and technical tools associated with quantifying ocean carbon dioxide removal and leveraging those tools to bolster the monitoring, reporting, and verification of carbon dioxide removal.Matthew discusses the research that he conducts and the successes and challenges that the research has identified. 

Philip Boyd joins Wil Burns and Anna Madlener in this episode of the podcast to discuss  a recent publication, "Operational Monitoring of Open-Ocean Carbon Dioxide Removal Deployments: Detection, Attribution, and Determination of Side Effects". Phil discusses the technological and scientific focus areas necessary to enable operational monitoring as highlighted in the paper by him and his co-authors. This includes tools to be used, field implementation, reporting and verification and  three guiding principles they have identified to enable operational monitoring.Philip Boyd is a professor of Marine Biogeochemistry at the Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania.

Dr. Jessica Cross joins Anna Madlener and Wil Burns on the podcast to discuss the driving and scientifically informed academic, entrepreneurial, and legislative pathways for ocean-based carbon removal approaches.Jessica is a research oceanographer at the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) where she leads the Carbon Dioxide Removal Task Force and manages the Carbon System Observing Research and Development for the Alaska and Pacific Arctic regions. Jessica, Anna, and Wil have a great discussion on the successes and challenges they are currently facing in the carbon removal field and three things she would like to see the industry focus on over the next year.

Dr. Franziska Elmer and John Auckland join Wil Burns and new cohost Anna Madlener on the podcast to discuss the startup Seafields Solutions. Seafields uses compressed sargassum bales to function as natural “carbon batteries.” The bales are sunk into the abyssal plain of the ocean, which will local away the CO2 for millennia. Franziska and John tell you about their company and their process where they discuss how their company will work towards getting permitting, third-party impact assessments, and navigating the rules of regulation in order to accomplish their goals. Seafileds Website: https://www.seafields.eco/  

Host Wil Burns and producer, Andrew Lewin, welcome Mowgli Homes to the podcast to discuss the measuring, reporting, and verification (MRV) of carbon sequestration in the future. Mowgli is the CEO of Submarine, which is hoping to help the industry navigate the shoals of MRV in a cost-effective and high-integrity fashion.Mowgli discusses where the industry is going and how it will address some of the challenges in the future. 

Arin Crumley and Christian Robinson join Wil Burns and guest host (and producer), Andrew Lewin on the podcast to discuss their business called Pull to Refresh. The idea was borne out of a number of interactions on Clubhouse to help people and businesses reverse the effects of climate change.Hear more from Arin and Christian on how the business was started and the company's approach to seaweed sequestration.Pull to Refresh Website: https://pulltorefresh.earth/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/refreshingearth/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/refreshingearth Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/refreshingearth LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/pulltorefresh/ 

Wil Burns speaks to Romany Webb, an Associate Research Scholar at Columbia Law School and Deputy Director of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, about local legislation around coastal and ocean carbon removal. Romany recently authored a paper entitled "Permitting seaweed cultivation for carbon sequestration in California: barriers and recommendations" and is on the podcast to discuss her experience with state and local legislation on the matter. Romany Webb: https://climate.law.columbia.edu/directory/romany-m-webb

Our inaugural episode is a critical one and one in which host Wil Burns explores often throughout this podcast how we qualify, verify, and report claims of carbon sequestration from ocean-based approaches. Wil is joined by two experts in the field, Steve Crooks, who is the co-founder at the consultancy Sylvestrum Climate Associates as well as a research associate with the Smithsonian Institution, and Elizabeth Guinessey, who is the manager of the Food and Blue Carbon Innovation node at Verra, which is a non-profit organization that among other roles, serves as a secretariat for the development and management of carbon market protocols. The conversation centers around the new Seascape Initiative and its potential role in carbon dioxide removal. Steve Crooks: https://www.silvestrum.com/the-teamElizabeth Guinessey: https://verra.org/staff/liz-guinessey/