Scrubbing the Sky: Inside the Race to Cool the Planet

LIVE from the Montreal's Climate Solutions Prize Festival 2025 

Na'im Merchant, Executive Director of Carbon Removal Canada and the host of The Carbon Curve podcast, and Grégoire Baillargeon, President of BMO Quebec and Vice Chair of BMO Capital Markets join Ed Whittingham for a panel discussion exploring how Canada can become a global leader in carbon removal. 

With two podcast hosts and one Bank of Montreal president, Ed, Na'im and Greg pass the host's mic like a baton as they unpack the developer, buyer and policy dimensions of today’s CDR market in Canada and abroad.

About Our Guests:

Na’im Merchant is the Executive Director of Carbon Removal Canada. He is passionate about the potential for carbon removal to meet climate goals while driving economic and social change. He previously founded Carbon Curve, a consulting practice focused on equitably scaling up carbon removal. Na’im is an advisor to Terraset and the Carbon Removal Standards Initiative, and was previously an Elemental Impact Policy Fellow. He brings 10+ years of leadership experience in non-profits that expanded access to health innovations around the world.

Grégoire Baillargeon is President of BMO, Quebec and Vice Chair, BMO Capital Markets, in November 2022. Passionate about transition and fighting climate change, Mr. Baillargeon has also been acting as Vice Chair of the BMO Climate Institute since September 2024. He recently joined the advisory board of Volt-age: Electrifying Society, a research program at Concordia University, and also serves on Carbon Removal Canada’s advisory board. Under his leadership, BMO became the first bank to join the Montréal Climate Partnership, as well as the launch of conVERTgence, two movements aimed at accelerating decarbonization and integrating sustainable business practices in the city.

Produced by Amit Tandon & Bespoke Podcasts

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Energy vs Climate Podcast: How climate change is changing our energy systems

www.energyvsclimate.com

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A bonus Energy vs Climate episode:

On February 27, 2025, Ed Whittingham hosted a panel discussion at Carbon Removal Canada's Carbon Removal Day in Ottawa. They cover a number of topics including the changing political headwinds in the US, efforts to bolster investment in Canada, and silicon valley's interest in CDR. Plus, they take a few audience questions.

Detailed show notes on episode page.

About Our Guests:

Lucy Hargreaves is the VP of Corporate Affairs & Policy at Patch, a SF-based carbon markets platform that’s accelerating investment into global climate action at scale. Beyond her work at Patch, Lucy is part of the core team driving Build Canada and Canada Spends, volunteer-led initiatives focused on helping Canadian entrepreneurs share their ideas for a bolder, richer, freer country and making government spending more accessible and transparent. 

Daniel Kelter is Carbon Removal Canada’s Director of Government Relations, a strategic policy advisor who excels at connecting political insight with industry challenges. With experience working alongside Members of Parliament and navigating the intricacies of hard-to-decarbonize sectors like fertilizer and steel, Daniel has been instrumental in crafting advocacy strategies that forge strong government-industry partnerships."

Jorden Dye is the director for the Business Renewables Centre-Canada and the Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) Centre, both initiatives of the Pembina Institute focused on accelerating climate action through corporate procurement. His work includes leading a community of over 60 participating organizations across Canada to spur renewable energy development and developing educational resources to introduce carbon dioxide removal to new audiences.

Produced by Amit Tandon & Bespoke Podcasts

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Energy vs Climate

www.energyvsclimate.com

Bluesky | YouTube | LinkedIn | X/Twitter

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Ed Whittingham closes out Season 1 by examining the case against Direct Air Capture by one its harshest critics, Al Gore, followed by the counterarguments of supporters. Will DAC live up to its hype and potential to help cool a warming planet? 

Guests include: 

• Greg Nemet, professor at the University of Wisconsin
• Klaus Lackner, professor at Arizona State University
• David Keith, professor at the University of Chicago and a DAC pioneer who founded the company Carbon Engineering
• Sara Hastings-Simon, professor at the University of Calgary
• Christian Theuer, Policy Communications Lead at Heirloom
• Jim McDermott, co-founder and the managing partner of Rusheen Capital Management, LLC
• Éric St-Pierre, Executive Director of the Trottier Family Foundation

Learn more at www.scrubbingthesky.com

Follow us on: LinkedIn | Bluesky | YouTube

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Produced by Amit Tandon & Bespoke Podcasts.

The podcast is part of the Carbon Herald’s podcast network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Ed Whittingham delves into the early days of another pioneering Direct Air Capture (DAC) company, Switzerland’s Climeworks, and its innovative modular approach to deploying its technology. Ed also looks into the developing synergy between the tech sector and carbon removal. 

Guests include: 

• Jan Wurzbacher, co-founder of Climeworks
• Lucy Hargreaves, Corporate Affairs and Climate Policy at Patch
• Jim McDermott, co-founder and the managing partner of Rusheen Capital Management, LLC
• David Keith, professor at the University of Chicago and a DAC pioneer who founded the company Carbon Engineering

Learn more at www.scrubbingthesky.com

Follow us on: LinkedIn | Bluesky | YouTube

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Produced by Amit Tandon & Bespoke Podcasts.

The podcast is part of the Carbon Herald’s podcast network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Ed Whittingham continues the story behind the development of Direct Air Capture (DAC) technology and its potential role in helping to fight climate change. Ed explores the early days of Canadian cleantech company Carbon Engineering, and how it drew the attention of both Bill Gates and Occidental Petroleum. 

Guests include: 

• Ken Caldeira, senior scientist at Breakthrough Energy
• David Keith, professor at the University of Chicago and a DAC pioneer who founded the company Carbon Engineering

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or on your podcast app of choice.

Learn more at www.scrubbingthesky.com

Follow us on: LinkedIn | Bluesky

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Produced by Amit Tandon & Bespoke Podcasts.

The podcast is part of the Carbon Herald’s podcast network.

A special thanks to our friends at the Challenging Climate podcast which is available wherever you find your podcasts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Host Ed Whittingham dives into the world of Direct Air Capture (DAC), a technology that extracts carbon dioxide directly from the ambient air. Ed explores the early history of carbon dioxide removal, why it could be useful in fighting climate change, and challenges the technology has faced along the way. 

Guests include: 

• Klaus Lackner, professor at Arizona State University and often referred to as the “Grandfather of DAC”
• David Keith, professor at the University of Chicago and a DAC pioneer who founded the company Carbon Engineering 
• Paul McKendrick, author of the book that inspired this series  

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or on your podcast app of choice.

Learn more at www.scrubbingthesky.com

Follow us on: LinkedIn | Bluesky

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Produced by Amit Tandon & Bespoke Podcasts.

The podcast is part of the Carbon Herald’s podcast network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Podcast series coming March 2025...

The definitive podcast on one of the most critical efforts of our time, Scrubbing the Sky: Inside the Race to Cool the Planet, details the stakes behind the global race to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Host Ed Whittingham - renowned climate expert, policy advocate, and co-host of the Energy vs Climate podcast - guides listeners through the history, challenges, and breakthroughs of carbon removal, offering deep insights from the forefront of climate innovation.

In season one Ed explores the rise of one of the most promising carbon removal technology pathways, direct air capture (DAC). This four-part series unpacks the evolution of DAC technology, its potential to help avert climate disaster, and the companies racing to bring it to market.

Learn more at www.scrubbingthesky.com

Follow us on: LinkedIn | Bluesky | YouTube

Produced by Amit Tandon & Bespoke Podcasts.

The podcast is part of the Carbon Herald podcast network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.