In the face of unchecked growth in carbon pollution, we now know devastating effects of climate change are accelerating and new tools for  massive cleanup of carbon pollution are needed, alongside continued efforts to curtail emissions. The emerging field of carbon cleanup needs Tribal involvement and vision to be truly successful. 

● To achieve climate goals, carbon drawdown is now just as crucial as emission  reduction (IPCC, NASEM). 

● Within decades, cleaning up billions of tons of CO2 annually from the air and  water will generate millions of jobs, and trillions of dollars in revenue. 

● This large-scale work must continue for generations, even centuries. 

● Time is short. IPCC projects that annual carbon “drawdown” must grow to 10  billion tons by 2050, nearly 20 billion by 2100.  

● Such immense scale cannot be attained without careful research and a just,  sustainable system of governance, ownership, and accountability. 

● Tribes have a vital role in shaping and governing this vast emerging sector so that it benefits indigenous peoples—instead of harming them. Tribal involvement is vital to protect indigenous rights, lands and waters. And without Tribal  leadership—built on indigenous authorities, knowledge, and leadership—can the world even hope to achieve enduring climate restoration? 

● We believe recognition of indigenous rights and authorities is foundational to the world’s prospects for climate solutions.  

● Carbon removal will bring both challenges and opportunities for Tribes’ as they rebuild their cultural, economic and natural resources, and sovereignty. The field is young, so early opportunities are primarily in research and development.  

● Federal and private-sector funding is available for Tribes in this field. This gives Tribal governments a chance to build expertise, identify effective and appropriate carbon-removal approaches for their communities, craft priorities, and develop well-informed guardrails to guide future development in this field.

We are engaging Tribes nationwide, with three goals: 

● Support Tribes in both practice and governance of carbon removal. 

● Accelerate growth of federal funding for carbon removal, especially in the ocean, and advancing Tribally led governance, R&D and implementation efforts. 

● Develop sound legal frameworks, institutions, and guidance for this new field so that it can be built to last: just, inclusive, accountable, welcomed by those who  live with it, and sustainable. 

● First engage Tribes, then a larger group of actors. 

● Build a shared understanding of the mutual crisis and the available tools and resources to meet it, laying the groundwork for solutions.

● Create groundwork for Tribes to establish a broad community of shared interests with businesses, carbon removal practitioners, research institutions, NGOs, agencies, just-transition groups, and others. This broader community will drive policy development in the future. Global Ocean Health and partners will work to serve, inform, and strengthen that initiative.