Carbon Technology Research Foundation

Non-profit philanthropic organisation Carbon Technology Research Foundation was established in 2020 to catalyse funds for research and cutting-edge innovation into the application of biotechnology to deliver enhanced scalable solutions for carbon sequestration. This could make a meaningful contribution towards preventing climate change.

Founded in Oslo in 2020 by Norwegian entrepreneur Stig Arff.. non-profit philanthropic organisation Carbon Technology Research Foundation forms the grant-making body of its member company- Fremr- a private equity firm with a focus on sustainable investments based in both the UK and Norway. It was primarily established to catalyse funds for research and cutting-edge innovation into the application of biotechnology to deliver enhanced scalable solutions for carbon sequestration. This could make a meaningful contribution towards preventing climate change.

The team- spearheaded by Stig Arff- aims to grow the research knowledge pool and demonstrate the case for additional investment from other foundations- companies- and government agencies. With a PhD in physics from the University of Oslo combined with an MBA from the Norwegian School of Management.. Stig has worked within the finance sector since two decades and has established several successful business ventures. He first became aware of the dangers of climate change when studying physics in the Eighties and subsequently created CTR Foundation to pursue scientific ideas that increase the chances of preserving the planet.

In early 2022 CTR Foundation retained Oxford HR to put together a powerhouse core team from scratch.. beginning with the CEO- a leader who understood the shared vision to be able to deliver the strategic direction and develop the organisation. Since April 2022 Dave Hillyard was appointed chief executive. Since twenty-five years he has worked in the international development, environment and conservation sectors in leadership roles by collaborating with the academic and private sector. 

Current Research Priorities includes Biotechnology and Carbon Removal. "Algae- both micro (single-cell) and macro (multi-cell)- are really intriguing. They're absolutely tiny but they've got huge potential in terms of sequestering CO2 very quickly" says Dr. Surabi Menon on the official website of the foundation. "I'm interested in the ways in which we can use biotechnology or chemical processes to help speed up the transition and then possibly create products that can be used and have other purposes or find ways to sequester the carbon permanently."

The core team of Carbon Technology Research Foundation believes that to prevent catastrophic warming from climate change we need to reduce emissions and existing carbon dioxide from the air. It is the main physical driver of human-caused climate change and a large fraction of all CO2 emissions stay in the atmosphere for thousands of years. By cleaning up that CO2 and eventually drawing down atmospheric CO2 levels, carbon removal can help reduce or even reverse climate change. However- by 2050 an estimated ten gigatons of CO2 per year needs to be removed from the atmosphere to meet the goals of the Paris Climate agreement. Sadly- though- despite its potential.. the scale up of natural processes using biotechnology is poorly understood and underfunded.

"The correlation between the increase in carbon dioxide and the accelerating impacts of climate change has been known for decades and well publicised since the early 2000s. I wish we had started listening to the warnings a little bit sooner but on the other hand there's a lot of really interesting technology under development that's exploring new ways of carbon removal" says Prof. Alistair McCormick on the official website of CTRF. "In my area one really exciting development has been the growth of systems biology into synthetic biology and now into engineering biology. This evolution has brought in more disciplines – as an engineering biologist I'm able to work with- for example- material scientists and physicists more easily which means that what we work on together is that much more impactful."

In more recent news- in early 2023 CTRF established a multidisciplinary Scientific Advisory Council to provide expert oversight and technical advice on its Research Strategy and projects selected for funding. The team is a diverse group of leaders in their respective fields that includes Dr. Surabi Menon- Chair of Scientific Advisory Council.. Prof. Alistair McCormick- Professor of Plant Engineering Biology at The University of Edinburgh.. Prof. Louise Horsfall- Professor of Sustainable Biotechnology at The University of Edinburgh.. Prof. David Beerling- Sorby Professor of Natural Sciences: School of Biosciences at University of Sheffield.. Dr. Jerry Blackford- Head of Science: Marine Systems Modelling at Plymouth Marine Laboratory.. Dr. Colin Averill- Senior Scientist at ETH Zurich.. and Sarah Sclarsic- Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Voyager VC. 

Carbon Technology Research Foundation envisions transformational change whereby the world responds successfully to the severe accelerating risks associated with cumulative CO2 emissions.