Invest Like the Best with Patrick O'Shaughnessy

Jonathan Goldberg - Capturing Carbon - [Founder’s Field Guide, EP. 25]

Mar 18, 2021

Jonathan Goldberg, the CEO of Carbon Direct and a former hedge fund founder, dives into the pressing issues of carbon capture and removal. He discusses the urgent need for global carbon standards and taxes to combat climate change. Goldberg shares insights on the evolution of carbon markets and the role of innovative technologies in capturing emissions. He emphasizes the importance of diverse carbon reduction strategies and the impact of corporate commitments on achieving net-zero goals. This conversation presents a masterclass on navigating the future of sustainability.

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INSIGHT

Carbon Removal Methods

Carbon removal is essential due to accumulated atmospheric CO2.
Methods include natural approaches like trees and soil, and engineered solutions like direct air capture.

INSIGHT

Corporate Participation

Microsoft aims for carbon negativity by reducing emissions and purchasing carbon removal, including direct air capture and natural solutions.
While corporate pledges are positive, they are insufficient to solve the problem at scale.

INSIGHT

Portfolio Approach

A portfolio approach to carbon removal is essential, combining natural methods and engineered solutions like direct air capture.
While natural solutions are valuable, they are limited in scale and require ongoing maintenance.

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My guest today is Jonathan Goldberg, the founder, and CEO of Carbon Direct, a company focused on advising and investing in carbon removal at scale. Jonathan started his career in the commodities division of Goldman Sachs and then went on to start a commodity hedge fund, BBL Commodities. In our conversation, we cover the state of the carbon problem today, the importance of global carbon standards and carbon taxes, and the future of carbon capture and removal technologies. This was a masterclass on all things carbon-related. Please enjoy my conversation with Jonathan Goldberg.

For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here.

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Show Notes

[00:03:25] - [First question] - Overview of his career

[00:06:02] - The start of his commodities trading strategy and its evolution

[00:09:08] - Key strategies for making money as a commodities trader

[00:10:41] - Opportunity to trade commodities today

[00:11:39] - Making the shift to carbon capture work

[00:15:04] - Range of consequences for elevated carbon emissions and biggest buckets of carbon

[00:18:52] - An outline of the Paris Climate Accord and other agreements on climate change

[00:20:26] - Ways to remove carbon from the atmosphere

[00:23:46] - The technology to remove carbon and incentives to invest in this technology

[00:26:19] - Corporate participation in the carbon trade

[00:28:35] - Balance of natural vs man-made solutions

[00:31:53] - Making money without the altruistic goals

[00:33:43] - Trends in the fossil fuel industry

[00:36:41] - Convenient ways for consumers to switch to clean energy products

[00:39:57] - The geopolitical will to shift towards cleaner energy

[00:41:58] - Primary consequences of not making this shift

[00:44:25] - The important role of regulation

[00:46:01] - Thinking through the investing side of combating climate change

[00:48:59] - Kindest thing anyone has done for him