The ocean covers over 70% of our planet’s surface, yet when we talk about carbon removal, conversations are often focused on prominent land-based and tech-based solutions like forests and direct air capture (DAC). It’s time our carbon removal strategy matched the size of our seas.
Marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR) holds immense promise for scaling carbon removal to the gigatons (billions of tons of CO2) we need to address the climate crisis. But in doing so, we must include those who are most intimately connected to our coastal communities.
Today, we’re announcing the first recipients of our Making Waves Coastal Community Regranting Initiative. Three remarkable and regionally-diverse teams will help ensure mCDR deployment prioritizes community voices, traditional knowledge systems, and environmental justice from the start.
Putting communities first
In our decade of work, we’ve learned that meaningful community engagement is essential from the beginning, not something tacked on to the end. Through our regranting programs, we’ve proven this approach works: providing direct funding and technical resources to community-based organizations creates spaces for more nuanced, locally-informed approaches to carbon removal. This has become invaluable as a means of ground-truthing our advocacy with on-the-ground realities and centering those most impacted in the process.
Like our other regranting work, The Making Waves initiative doesn’t ask partners to simply accept or reject mCDR, but instead bolsters self-determination in communities to explore and assess responsible development and deployment of carbon removal. We know we’re in the midst of a climate emergency and taking the time to learn and amplify expertise of local communities and Indigenous peoples is a key piece of the deployment puzzle.
Meet our first cohort
Alaska: Community Leaders and mCDR (CLaM) Project
This project is led by the Alaska Ocean Acidification Network in collaboration with the Native Village of Eyak, Coastal Praxis, Ringer Consulting, community leader and fisherman Theresa Peterson, Cordova District Fishermen United, the Fishery Friendly Climate Action Campaign, the University of Alaska Fairbanks and the Sun’aq Tribe of Kodiak. It brings together commercial fishermen, Indigenous organizations and marine scientists from across the Gulf of Alaska.
Because of its unique ocean conditions, Alaska is likely to be a hotspot for future mCDR research. The CLaM project will host roundtables in Kodiak and Prince William Sound, regions that have already dealt with major environmental damage from oil spills and are actively tracking ocean conditions such as acidification. Their work will lead to policy recommendations that help lawmakers decide how mCDR should be governed to protect both the ocean and the people who depend on it.
Why this project is special? It brings in voices that are often overlooked in policy discussions: fishermen, Tribal members, and people in small, remote communities. They’ll have a real say in how mCDR research moves forward in their waters.
“We know mCDR will be coming to Alaska and this is a chance to foster informed input and leadership before that happens. We’re also curious about how coastal Alaskans will want their involvement in mCDR to look in an ideal world. There is still an opportunity to shape that ideal world.”
— ClaM project leaders
Hawai’i: ʻĀina Momona
Based on Molokaʻi, ʻĀina Momona has spent years restoring traditional Hawaiian land and water management systems, from ancient fishponds to watershed restoration. Their approach integrates ancestral knowledge with modern conservation science to address everything from soil erosion to coral reef protection.
For their mCDR project, ʻĀina Momona will conduct statewide surveys and focus groups to assess baseline understanding of mCDR across Hawai’i. They’ll engage fishers, cultural practitioners, and youth to gauge awareness and concerns, ensuring that any future mCDR discussions in Hawaiian waters are grounded in community input and cultural consent.
What makes this project special? It’s rooted in Native Hawaiian concepts of stewardship and explicitly centers Indigenous knowledge systems in evaluating new climate technologies.
“For decades our community has been in a position of defense- constantly working to defend our natural and cultural resources from entities that have predetermined improper policy and use for our lands and waters without our consent or input. This effort is part of a growing change in trend where we can finally be on the offense- working to determine what is best for our lands, waters, and communities before decisions are made for us. This level of community engagement is rare, but needed as we continue to exert our right to self-determination and enact critical community-led restoration activities on the ground and in the sea.”
— Āina Momona
Puerto Rico: Institute for Socio-Ecological Research (ISER Caribe)
ISER Caribe operates the first land-based coral, sea urchin, and herbivorous crab nurseries in Puerto Rico. They’re already working on ecosystem-based restoration that supports carbon sequestration through their coral reef projects.
With Carbon180’s support, ISER Caribe will develop a mangrove nursery pilot project at their facility in Ceiba, integrating it with community education about blue carbon strategies and other carbon removal approaches. They’ll train local community members in nursery management and restoration techniques while providing mangrove seedlings for broader restoration efforts across Puerto Rico.
What makes this project special? It demonstrates how carbon removal can integrate with existing conservation work while building local capacity and supporting community-led environmental restoration.
“We are excited that we are expanding our ecological restoration efforts into mangrove forest ecosystems, with a focus on their role in marine carbon dioxide removal. This project will contribute to ongoing efforts in Puerto Rico and strengthen the direct and indirect ecological interactions between mangrove and coral reef ecosystems, thereby enhancing ecosystem resilience and promoting long-term climate mitigation.”
— Institute for Socio-Ecological Research (ISER Caribe)
A different kind of regranting
This initiative aligns with our trust-based approach to regranting, which puts communities in the driver’s seat rather than treating them as passive recipients of funding. We know communities across the US have deep expertise and hold the solutions to some of our biggest hurdles in addressing climate change. We’re looking forward to supporting their journey as they tackle some of the field’s biggest questions like: What would responsible mCDR look like here? How do we make sure it supports, not undermines, local jobs and traditions? Who should be involved in decision-making and how can we make that happen?
Each group will both inform and participate in a curriculum designed by Carbon180 tailored to their unique needs and interests. Carbon180 will also work with our partners to participate in site visits and other platforms for co-learning, and apply all of this invaluable knowledge towards shaping and informing mCDR policy.
The bigger picture
Interest and investment in mCDR is expanding, and it is quickly becoming an important part of the climate conversation. Research is moving fast, pilot projects are lining up, and federal dollars have begun flowing into mCDR. The real question isn’t if this will move forward, it’s whether communities will have a seat at the table when it does.
By supporting coastal communities to build their own expertise, we’re working toward a future where ocean solutions strengthen, not threaten, the ecosystems and livelihoods that depend on healthy seas. We’re excited to see how our partners demonstrate what community-centered mCDR engagement can be, and know their work will have an outsized impact in this growing field.
The stakes are high both for the climate crisis and for coastal communities. With The Making Waves Initiative, we’re putting our trust where it belongs: in communities leading the way.
Edited by Jason Aul. Image by Jess Loiterton.
