Danny Cullenward
Senior Fellow, Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal, American University
“What comes next for carbon removal under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement?”
Danny Cullenward is an economist and lawyer focused on the scientific integrity of climate policy. His book, Making Climate Policy Work (with David G. Victor), shows how political forces make green industrial policy more effective than carbon pricing. Dr. Cullenward is a Senior Fellow with the Kleinman Center for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania and a Senior Fellow with the Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal at American University. In addition to his academic research, he also serves as the Vice Chair of California’s Independent Emissions Market Advisory Committee, a member of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol’s Independent Standards Board, and a member of the Paris Agreement Article 6.4 mechanism’s Methodological Expert Panel. Dr. Cullenward holds a JD from Stanford Law School and a PhD in Environment and Resources from Stanford University.
Romany Webb
Research Scholar, Columbia Law School; Deputy; Director, Sabin Center for Climate Change Law; Adjunct Associate Professor of Climate, Columbia Climate School
“The Role of US States and Local Governments in Regulating mCDR“
Romany Webb is Deputy Director of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law. Romany also holds appointments as a Research Scholar at Columbia Law School, Adjunct Associate Professor of Climate at the Columbia Climate School, and Senior Advisor on Climate Science at the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism. Romany’s research focuses on two primary areas: (1) energy and (2) negative emissions technologies. Romany’s energy-related research explores how legal and policy tools can be used to minimize the climate impacts of energy development as well the impacts of climate change on energy infrastructure. Romany also researches legal issues associated with the development and deployment of negative emissions technologies on land and in the ocean.
Ingrid Udd Sundvor
Co-founder and Director, Carbon Balance Initiative | Research Associate, Oxford Net Zero, University of Oxford
“The Role of Geological Net Zero & Carbon Storage Mandates in Future Compliance Markets”
Ingrid Sundvor is the Co-founder and Director of the Carbon Balance Initiative, an NGO founded at the University of Oxford that develops science-based policy and regulatory frameworks to secure a durable net zero future. Her work focuses on scaling permanent CDR, advancing CCS regulation through mandatory carbon storage mechanisms, and developing policy packages to hold the fossil fuel sector accountable and align them with geological net zero goals. Under her leadership, Carbon Balance has partnered with governments, policymakers, investors, UN institutions, NGOs, and global alliances. Ingrid is also a Research Associate at Oxford Net Zero, an interdisciplinary research team at the University of Oxford. Her publications cover topics including policy mechanisms for CDR and the implications of net zero for financial institutions. Previously, she served as CEO of Project Access International, a global non-profit addressing educational inequality. She holds a BSc from King’s College London and an MSc in Environmental Change and Management from the University of Oxford.
Darius Sultani
Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research
“Sequencing CDR into the EU ETS”
Darius is a researcher at PIK’s working group “Climate and Energy Policies” (Dr. Michael Pahle). His research focuses on policy instruments to decarbonize the European basic materials industry, as well as the integration of Carbon Dioxide Removals into the EU policy mix. Before commencing his PhD at PIK, he graduated with degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Technology Policy and gained policy experience at the European Commission and the German Federal Government.
Sena McCrory
Ecologist, Freshwater and Marine Regulatory Branch, EPA Office of Water
“Marine carbon dioxide removal and the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act”
Sena McCrory is an ecologist in EPA’s Marine Protection Permitting Program where she serves as a subject matter expert on permitting of marine carbon dioxide removal activities under the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act, or MPRSA.
Giulia Belotti
Research Fellow, Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal
“Using Future Scenarios to Engage Coastal Communities on Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement“
Giulia Belotti (she/her) holds a master’s degree from the Institute for Resources, Environment, and Sustainability at the University of British Columbia and has a background in Political Science and International Relations. Her previous research examined the intersection of the housing and climate crises by exploring residents’ perceptions of large urban development projects in the city of Vancouver. Currently, her research focuses on the ethics and politics of environmental technology. Giulia has extensive experience engaging with community partners and equity-deserving groups through her research and work with nonprofit organizations in Metro Vancouver. She is committed to advancing justice, equity, mutuality, and care in her work, with the aim of supporting broader socioecological change
Sara Nawaz
Director of Research, Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal, American University
Panel 3 Chair
Sara Nawaz is the Director of Research at American University’s Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal. She is an environmental social scientist who studies the social dimensions of novel, durable approaches to carbon removal, particularly open-system and marine approaches. She investigates how carbon removal technologies and policies might be designed in just and responsible ways, including how to involve societal groups in these processes. She holds a PhD from the University of British Columbia and a MPhil from the University of Oxford.
Simon Nicholson
Co-Director, Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal, American University
Panel 1 Chair
Simon Nicholson, PhD, is an associate professor of Global Environmental Politics and serves as Associate Dean for Research at the School of International Service at American University. His scholarly work and policy and community engagement focus on global environmental governance, global food politics, and the politics of emerging technologies. His work on carbon removal is informed by a deep sense of concern about the lack of effective response to climate change coming from mainstream political and social processes. At the same time, prior work on the politics of technology tells him that promising technological responses to complex social problems can too easily go awry, can fail to fulfill expectations, can be repurposed for ill-conceived or nefarious ends, or can entrench the very dynamics that drive the problems to which the technologies are attempting to respond. He brings cautious optimism to the carbon removal conversation, with emphasis on “cautious.”
Wil Burns
Wil Burns, Co-Director, Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal, American University
Conference Coordinator; Panel 2 Chair
Wil Burns is the Founding Co-Director of the Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal at American University’s School of International Service (SIS) in Washington, DC. He is also the Associate Director of the Environmental Policy and Culture Program at Northwestern University. He has taught at a number of other universities, including John Hopkins University, where he served as the Director of the Energy Policy & Climate Program, the University of Chicago, Stanford University, and the University of California-Berkeley. He has taught in professional, graduate and undergraduate programs, as well as at law schools.
Prior to becoming an academic, he served as Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs for the State of Wisconsin and worked in the non-governmental sector for twenty years, including as Executive Director of the Pacific Center for International Studies, a think-tank that focused on implementation of international wildlife treaty regimes.
Ben Rubin
Executive Director & Co-Founder, Carbon Business Council
“Scaling Carbon Removal Globally: Building Local Community Support“
Ben Rubin is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Carbon Business Council, a nonprofit trade association representing more than 100 carbon management companies working together to responsibly restore the climate and make a gigaton-scale climate impact. Ben is also the Publisher of the Carbon Herald, which is the carbon management industry’s preeminent media outlet. He is a Research Fellow with the Institute for Responsible Carbon Removal at American University.
Erin Burns
Director, Carbon180
Keynote Session: “Carbon Removal as a Public Service: The U.S. Government’s Role in Scaling the CDR Industry“
As the first dedicated CDR nonprofit in the US, Carbon180 is a new breed of climate NGO on a mission to reverse two centuries of carbon emissions. As executive director, Erin Burns is shaping the organization’s strategic direction while growing the organization’s influence in both policy and the carbon removal field. Previously, she worked in the Senate alongside Manchin, handling energy, environment, labor, and agricultural issues, including staffing for the Energy and Natural Resources Committee and the Public Lands Subcommittee. She also worked at Third Way, a DC-based think tank, managing carbon capture and removal, innovation, and clean energy. A native of West Virginia, her path to and vision for CDR is deeply rooted in firsthand experiences of the legacy of coal mining and heavy industry, and its impact on her community. Erin sits on the board of Good Energy Collective, serves as an advisor to University of Michigan’s Global CO2 Initiative, and has been published in The Hill. She holds a bachelor’s degree in cultural anthropology from Carnegie Mellon University.
Vanessa Suarez
Managing Environmental Justice Advisor, Carbon180
“Community Benefits and Power“
Vanessa Suarez champions equity and justice in carbon removal policies and projects as part of the environmental justice team at Carbon180. She holds a BS from UC Berkeley in conservation and resource studies and has a background in EJ policy and advocacy. Vanessa resides in California’s Central Valley.
Harald Ginzky
German Environment Agency
“The Role of the London Convention/Protocol in Regulating mCDR”
Dr. Harald Ginzky is lawyer by training and an expert of environmental law for 30 years. His doctoral thesis analyzed the interface of international trade law and sustainability clauses. He has published more than 120 scientific papers on a wide variety of topics of environmental law.
Since 2003, he is affiliated with the German Environment Agency. He has been member of German delegations to various international environmental treaties/regime, inter alia, International Seabed Authority, International Maritime Organization – London Convention and Protocol, UNCCD, OSPAR and HELCOM as well as FAO and the Global Soil Partnership.
One core topic of his work is the governance of climate engineering techniques, in particular marine geo-engineering. For Germany he negotiated all relevant decisions under London Convention and Protocol, in particular the 2013 amendment to London Protocol. He also coordinated the ratification by Germany and the transposition of the 2013 amendment domestically.
