The Global Business Summit Accelerating Gigaton-Scale CDR

Carbon Unbound is partnering with Terraset, AirMiners and CDR.fyi to unlock philanthropic capital and catalyse permanent carbon removal. 

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With the top 10 buyers dominating purchases and a growing removals gap, our goal is to change the narrative around CDR purchasing, spotlight some exceptional CDR providers, and leverage the summit to make a quantifiable, tons-removed difference while ensuring transparency and enhancing trust.

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Leveraging Terraset's tax-deductible vehicle for carbon removal, we ask you, the audience, to drive real impact by allocating dollars to a portfolio of incredible CDR companies, which is then used to purchase CDRs.

• The new administration's federal policies are expected to significantly impact carbon removal strategies. What are new uncertainties and opportunities the global CDR space is facing as a result of the administration change? 
• Will bipartisan support for CDR increase at the federal level? Can tax credits provide greater policy support such as with the 45Q which was revamped under the first Trump administration? 
• What are the developments and latest trends in Government procurement of carbon removal services? 
• Carbon removal lacks a pre-existing market, and it is in dire need of DEMAND. How can private sector players adapt and thrive under shifting federal policies? 
• What barriers or challenges does the USA exiting the Paris agreement present for the global CDR industry & companies? What is the path forward that will enable us to achieve our collective goals regardless of the U.S.'s involvement in the Paris Agreement?

• What can be done at the state and municipal levels to demonstrate the economic and ecosystem benefits of CDR and spur action? Who are the stakeholders that need to be involved?
• States can pave the way for this sector and New York and Massachusetts are among those leading on CDR. Are they influencing neighbouring states and is collaboration on the table?
• What lessons learned at the U.S. state and local levels could be applied to other subnational jurisdictions? What are the translatable learnings and next areas of opportunity? 
• What insights can we draw from existing global CDR regulations and policies that are actually leading to measurable DEMAND creation?

Rev up your engines! Investors will be positioned in the breakout room, ready to meet start-ups. Start-ups sit, have 4 minutes to pitch before a bell rings, and move to the next investor’s table.

• Forestry projects dominate the VCM market, the number of available credits is increasing and DEMAND is growing. Methods and geographic concentrations for ‘Improved Forest Management’ (IFM) and ‘Afforestation, Reforestation, and Revegetation’ (ARR) differ greatly. What are the key differences and advantages of IFM and ARR?
• Questions about lack of additionality and permanence have damaged these NBS credits in the past, but it’s been shedding its bad reputation. How has carbon accounting and MRV advanced and evolved, and what further innovations are in the works? How is permanence being addressed?
• What are the most significant risks and opportunities in securing buyers and scaling different forestry projects?  
• What’s the current and potential pipeline of forest-based CDR credits? Are these projects underfunded or undersupplied?

Organizations invite attendees to participate in intimate discussions about critical challenges related to CDR development and increasing DEMAND.

• What has been the CDR demand and supply status in 2024 and are we seeing growth in 2025?
• Have the existing principles, standards and reporting frameworks been motivating corporations to include (more) removals in their target setting? How has this impacted offset programs such as CORSIA?
• Will state-led initiatives and international trading schemes remain resilient under the new administration?
• How does Article 6 of the Paris agreement relate to CDR in the VCM? Which players does it impact the most? 
• Suppliers are trying to maximize the economic upside of carbon credit sales between the VCM and compliance markets. How do they navigate this?

• How are justice and equity included in business plans? What is this important and what are the benefits of doing so? 
• How have suppliers interfaced with communities in their work?  What have both their experiences been like? And what have been the most important learnings and surprises?
• Every project has social, environmental and economic implications that can impact those around it. What are some of the potential or existing conflicts that have come up between CDR companies and communities? Is there a pathway for alignment? 
• Federal mandates have driven much of the current demand for integrating equity and justice. What does this mean if federal support is reduced? 

• What impact have we seen across climate tech investment since Trump's presidential win? How do we expect this to affect the ability for innovators to secure capital? 
• Several CDR startups have moved from strategy to execution. When prioritising budgets, how do investors choose between new investments and supporting their portfolio companies with follow-on funding?
• Can we ‘flip the script’ on carbon removal from costly to money-making? 
• How are current DEMAND and supply metrics influencing investment sentiment?
• Policy support, data transparency, and innovative business models are key to reducing investment risk.  Is one more important, or are they highly integrated?

Spotlighting start-up CDR pioneers that utilize carbon to produce materials and products while permanently storing CO2. They showcase their unique solutions in carbon utilization to our panel of experts.

10 minutes case setting, 30 minutes breakout discussion, 20 minutes feedback sharing with the audience.

The lack of DEMAND will remain the key challenge in scaling CDR. This interactive session will outline different pathways for scaling demand and highlight the barriers we need to overcome. Drawing on firsthand accounts, scientific data, and expert insights, we will gather insights from buyers, suppliers, investors, policymakers, and other relevant stakeholders and explore how different stakeholders can learn from each other's experiences to increase this much-needed demand. 

Sharing is caring: the more the CDR community can unify their voices on buying carbon removal, the faster this market will scale.  Join us and share the lessons learnt with peers.

• Agricultural carbon credits and land management can potentially create lasting land value. What are the difficulties and untapped potential of these assets? What incentives and education are needed to motivate farmers? 
• ERW and biochar solutions are gaining ground. How do Biochar and ERW carbon credits support farmers, and how important is government support in ensuring the growing DEMAND? 
• Federal policy, especially the Farm Bill, is crucial to transforming the agricultural system. Will funding continue to be available? Will the private sector step up if policies are failing?  
• What is the contrast and potential between different geographies? What can regions globally learn from each other to improve the quality of carbon sequestration?

Organizations invite attendees to participate in intimate discussions about critical challenges related to CDR development and increasing DEMAND.

• Which of these sectors: industry, agriculture, buildings and transport have made the most progress and what innovative solutions specific to each sector are the most promising?   
• DEMAND for industrial products labelled as ‘green’ needs to increase dramatically. What is driving change quickest and why? 
• Voluntary efforts of large corporations have assisted in a push to get cleaner plants built. How can businesses, as well as coalitions accelerate policy incentives and regulatory frameworks?
• Several major HtA industries, particularly in Japan and Europe where there is a compliance market, signal the need for high-quality CDR. Is there enough signal to drive the potential supply needed and in a timely manner? 
• Will customers be the ones to bear the additional, near-term decarbonization costs, and in which of the HtA sectors will this be most evident?

The key to sustained growth in the CDR market lies in attracting more buyers, scaling DEMAND, and encouraging existing purchasers to increase their investments. This session will provide an update on the number of durable tonnes sold in the first quarter of Q1 2025 and also present a high-level approach of highlights and trends since our previous Carbon Unbound West Coast summit in late October 2024.

• The intersection of insurance, legal, and financial frameworks in the carbon removal industry is dynamic and evolving. How and at what stage do these frameworks interact with and support each other? 
• DEMAND for high-quality credits in the VCM is more pressing than ever. How do legal, contractual and insurance schemes adhere to higher standards?
• Can clarity over the legal treatment of carbon credits and the development of contract templates contribute to building a more robust VCM?
• How do you create robust legal frameworks in the nascent CDR sector whilst ensuring they are complimentary to the needs of the finance and insurance sector? 
• Has the risk profile of long-term offtake agreements been reduced? How can we improve trust and demystify risk through contractual and insurance schemes?

• Various funding sources and mechanisms are essential for project developers and investors alike. What are the building blocks of carbon removal project finance for Direct Air Capture? 
• Governments have pioneered CDR policies and financially incentivized the expansion of novel solutions, such as DAC. Will the new US Administration remain the leader in public procurement, or will its involvement change?
• What other hard-tech industries can DAC learn from, and can they cooperate with these sectors to accelerate scaling?
• If DAC had all the money and DEMAND in the world, what would the non-monetary challenges be with DAC?

• The growing interest and investment in freshwater and ocean-based methods (mCDR), combined with uncertainties, stress the need for government assistance. What support has been provided so far?
• Several ocean and freshwater CDR methods exploring carbon sinking capabilities have created DEMAND. What are the most promising ‘abiotic’ solutions, and what is their potential? What is the status and potential for ‘biological’ mCDR, such as kelp, seaweed and algae?
• Data transparency is key in trust building and creating growth of mCDR solutions and quantification uncertainty has been challenging. How has MRV evolved in mCDR over the last year?
• Many global laws restrict activities in maritime zones, which can complicate the use of these innovative solutions. What are other factors we should be aware of?

• Although the CDR market grew in 2024, we still desperately need to scale DEMAND. Can incentives such as the Global Fortune 1000 CDR Challenge make a sizable dent? 
• Policies and government support are vital for boosting CDR, but these have changed in the US and across borders. How has this impacted private engagement?
• Everybody, besides corporations, can join the market and use different purchasing options - such as marketplaces (Terraset with accompanying  tax benefits), coalitions, bilateral deals, buyer clubs, etc. What are buyers using, and which options will grow? 
• In the US, 2% of the GDP comes from charitable giving, but little goes to CDR. How can we influence the support of the philanthropic sector? 
• Education, market knowledge, and understanding one's carbon footprint are some factors that hinder new -small and big- players. How do you share knowledge and advise the ultimate decision-makers?

Carbon Unbound East Coast is proud to host OpenAir’s global student competition finals. The event will illuminate the next generation of CDR pioneers developing cutting-edge solutions. The five finalists will present their groundbreaking solutions to the delegation.

While enjoying a drink, come together to find out how much has been donated to the LIVE Carbon Removal Marketplace! We’ll hear where the money has come from and where it’s going, and make a final call for pledges.