In this talk I discuss how a capabilities approach (CA) can inform the deployment of carbon removal techniques (CDR) within climate mitigation projects as well as the broader sustainable development context. Specifically, CDR raises ethical concerns, especially issues of justice. I argue that the CA can offer a more accurate account of people’s quality of life in CDR implementation, expanding the discussion beyond the traditional distributive justice paradigm. Moreover, the CA can integrate a focus on recognition of human as well as non-human entities affected by CDR deployment. Ultimately, a CA to carbon removal provides greater conceptual clarity to the role of CDR in mitigation pathways consistent with climate justice.

This presentation is part of the panel Capabilities and transdisciplinarity in the ethics of technology