Absolute Climate Co-Founder Peter Minor Speaks Carbon Removal
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You’re a Co-Founder of Absolute Climate. When was the first time you heard about carbon removal?
My first real conversation on the topic was in 2014. I was a grad student at UC Berkeley when someone from the business school introduced me to the idea of actively drawing CO₂ out of the atmosphere. It was Noah Deich. He explained why the need for CDR was inevitable and walked me through promising technology pathways. Those early conversations planted the seed in my head, but my professional journey in CDR didn’t truly begin until I joined Carbon180 as Director of Science & Innovation in 2019.
What does Absolute Climate offer, and what makes it stand out?
At Absolute Climate, we design independent quality-assurance standards for CDR that certify whether a project’s claims match their atmospheric impacts. What sets us apart is our universal approach: every removal project is evaluated the same way across all pathways, so buyers can compare projects in an apples-to-apples way. We’re also resolving one of the core conflict of interests in CDR by separating quality assurance from credit issuance. Absolute Climate built standards, but doesn’t operate our own registry. We want to ensure that there is always a separation of power between the entity that defines quality of credits, and the one that issues the credits.
If you were to start Absolute Climate again, what would you do differently today?
This is a hard question to answer, because there are so so many things that I would do differently! The most publishable answer is that I would have directed my attention to local policy engagement much sooner. While high-profile efforts like the EU’s CRCF are invaluable, the most impactful climate policies often begin at the city or state level. Early wins at that scale build momentum, demonstrate feasibility, and cultivate grassroots support — all of which are essential for broader adoption down the line.
Where do you hope, and where do you think, Absolute and the carbon removal industry is in 3 years?
Carbon removal still has further to go to demonstrate that it is the missing tool for addressing climate change. Accomplishing this means removing doubts, mostly around achieving scale and atmospheric impacts. Absolute Climate wants to be a critical component in achieving this, by aligning incentives towards quality and building unassailable proof points that climate benefits are real. I’d love to say that we’ll get there in 3 years, but I think the reality is that it will take longer. But it wasn’t much more than 3 years ago that CDR was barely more than an ambitious idea. We’re an industry that’s used to gritting our teeth and pushing forward with determination.
What are the main unsolved questions in CDR, in your opinion?
Lots of unsolved questions remain at this point. One that is often on my mind is how we steer the right amount of resources to both negative emissions and emissions reductions. Both are crucial, yet current incentives skew heavily toward reductions, and many standards aren’t able to clearly make the distinction. If we don’t correct that imbalance, we risk underfunding the type of removals needed to hit our climate targets—and overstating the progress that’s genuinely been made.
If you weren’t dedicating so many resources to carbon removal, where else would you allocate them?
I’m really not sure, to be honest. I’ve spend 6+ years working in CDR at this point, and I love it. Both the technology, the optimism, and the extraordinary people that define our industry. I’m not sure I’d want to do anything else.
What trends are you most excited about? Where are the biggest holes in the carbon removal industry?
I’m energized by the surge in international climate resolve, especially following shifts in US leadership. There are so many places in the world that have the resources and talent to be CDR hotspots, which can continue to push the industry forward and drive new local economic growth. The biggest gap, however, is demand: without strong local purchase commitments or clear market signals, it’s tough to get projects off the ground. Either we find a way to demonstrate CDR is valuable enough to pay for, or it isn’t.
Where is your company located, and how does that location impact your trajectory?
Our company is based in California, as is most of our team. California is a special place because it’s uncommonly accepting of new ideas, even if they sound crazy at first. Which has been really helpful, as the only way to create long term solutions for climate are to challenge existing industry norms. California is also a hotbed of CDR innovation, allowing us to stay close to other entrepreneurs defining our industry. Still, we remind ourselves daily that carbon removal is a global mission, and it’s important for us to keep a wide-angle view of our work
If you could enact one policy for climate, what would it be?
I’d put a real price on carbon emissions — transforming them from an “unpriced externality” into a cost borne by emitters. Whether through a carbon tax or a border adjustment mechanism, forcing emitters to bear that cost would realign incentives, rewarding companies that avoid or capture emissions. While certainly not an easy fix, it’s the closest thing to a “silver bullet” that exists for climate.
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