Decades of inaction to address climate change require current and future policymakers to pursue actions that rapidly accelerate emissions reductions, while also removing past emissions from the atmosphere in order to achieve net-zero emissions and ultimately net-negative emissions. Through research, polling, and community engagement, Data for Progress is working to build a just future for carbon removal — one that creates new good-paying jobs and addresses systemic environmental injustices while putting America on a path to net-zero emissions.
Through a series of reports, we offer guiding principles, policy recommendations, and polling to underpin a progressive approach to carbon removal as part of a comprehensive plan to reach net-zero emissions.
Policy Memo: Guiding Principles
In this memo, we lay the foundation for a progressive carbon removal strategy by defining what does and does not constitute a progressive carbon removal strategy and establishing guiding principles for progressive carbon removal policymaking.
Policy Memo: Federal Action Plan
This report reviews existing legislative building blocks for progressive carbon removal innovation and deployment, and lays out recommendations for American leadership in this critical and underdeveloped area of climate policy
Policy Brief: Summary for Policymakers
This summary highlights the key elements of a progressive net-negative emissions strategy and outlines the goals that Congress and the White House must take to enact these proposals.
Polling Memo: Voters Support Investments in Carbon Removal Legislation
In this poll, we find that voters across party lines agree that the government should do more to remove carbon from the atmosphere and widely support federal investments in carbon removal research and development.
Data for Progress conducts workshops across the United States to understand community perspectives and attitudes toward direct air captures and CDR.
DAC Workshops One-Pager: Advancing Equitable Deployment of Regional DAC Hubs
This one-pager offers a concise summary of our qualitative workshops and polling research on the deployment of regional direct air capture projects.
DAC Workshops Report: Advancing Equitable Deployment of Regional DAC Hubs
This report describes and analyzes key takeaways from community workshops across the country as well as national survey analysis to examine community needs and attitudes toward the deployment of regional direct air capture hubs.
DAC Workshops Report: DAC Hubs in Fossil Fuel Country - Recommendations from the Gulf Coast
This report summarizes findings from three community workshops conducted in Texas and Louisiana and the implications of community opinion for the Department of Energy’s allocation of DAC funding.
A GREEN NEW DEAL FOR CALIFORNIA CITIES: EMPOWERING COMMUNITIES THROUGH CLIMATE INFRASTRUCTURE
This report analyzes five city-level community workshops and a statewide survey to reveal California adults prefer climate infrastructure projects that offer options for the co-creation of projects with communities and seek to distribute the economic and environmental benefits equitably.
In collaboration with environmental justice groups, we’re encouraging the Department of Energy to adopt equitable carbon removal strategies.
Letter: Environmental Justice Groups Reject DAC Funding for Fossil Fuels
In a letter to the Department of Energy, Data for Progress joined 16 environmental justice groups to call on the DOE to reject fossil fuel applicants for direct air capture funding.
COMMENT: It’s time for doe to embrace carbon management as a public good
Data for Progress submitted public comment in response to the DOE’s Responsible Carbon Management Initiative.
Questions? Contact catherine@dataforprogress.org for more information about Data for Progress’ work on carbon removal.