The Carbon Management Challenge (CMC) is a joint effort and call to action by countries worldwide to accelerate the deployment of carbon capture, removal, use, and storage technologies.  

Participating countries recognize that limiting warming to 1.5°C with minimal overshoot requires a dramatic increase in the pace and scale of deployment of carbon management technologies and infrastructure.  

Participating countries agree to advancing carbon management projects that globally will reach gigaton scale by 2030—that is, collectively managing 1Gt or more annually—to ensure our actions align with the science. The gigaton scale target includes projects in the development pipeline and those operational by 2030.

Carbon capture at large emission sources is essential to reduce emissions in sectors where alternative low-emission technologies are expensive or lacking. Moreover, carbon dioxide removal is necessary to counterbalance unavoidable greenhouse gas emissions from sectors like agriculture and aviation, which are challenging to decarbonize completely.                 

Carbon management is already recognized in the UNFCCC and the Paris Agreement and yet today, there persists a significant gap between the current levels of deployment for both carbon capture and carbon removal technologies and what is required to be on a pathway toward stabilizing temperatures to 1.5°C.                 

Enabling this scale up will require strong government commitments and leadership, along with ambitious public-private sector partnership. Governments and project proponents also have an important role to play in ensuring that carbon management projects prioritize meaningful public participation throughout, starting early, and maximize co-benefits for surrounding communities.

Countries participating in the CMC determine how they will meet the Challenge. They may: 

• develop and implement policies, regulations and programs; 
• create financial or fiscal incentives; 
• expand research funding; 
• launch new initiatives or join existing ones, such as the MI Carbon Dioxide Removal Mission and CEM Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage Initiative;
• build and invest in projects, among other things. 

These do not need to be new targets or actions. Rather, participants can draw on existing efforts already underway to manage CO₂.

Please find the latest participants in the CMC here.

New participants may join the CMC by notifying one of the co-sponsors via email from an authorized government official. Joining the CMC does not require signing a document, nor are any declarations or official communiques planned at this time.

No, countries are not required to announce new targets. There will be no country-specific allocations as the intent is to recognize the essential role globally for carbon management, the scale of action needed, and to begin implementing actions that bring us closer to that goal.

By joining the CMC, governments are elevating carbon management globally by 1) highlighting that carbon management is an essential pillar to limit global warming to 1.5°C, 2) recognizing that scale-up of carbon management is urgently needed, striving towards advancing projects by 2030 that will collectively manage gigaton scale of CO₂ annually, and 3) considering use of the CMC platform to announce existing or new supportive actions. The gigaton scale target—a pipeline of projects by 2030 that will manage at least 1.0 Gt CO₂ annually—is collective and aspirational, and there will be no country-specific allocations. There are no costs associated with joining the Challenge.

The CMC primarily involves technological carbon capture, transport, use, storage, and removal. It does not cover nature-based removal approaches such as afforestation or soil carbon sequestration.

The process to monitor and report progress toward CMC goals is to be determined by participating countries. This may include tracking carbon management projects, platforms for mobilizing financing or policies, and other techniques. Any monitoring or reporting activities will aim to minimize reporting burdens, using existing mechanisms and platforms where possible.

Additional support from outside sources, including NGOs and International Governmental Organizations (IGOs), will be vital for the success of the CMC. This support could include policy analysis and development, communications, technical assistance, monitoring and tracking progress, inter-governmental coordination, meeting hosting, identifying finance tools, and other activities.  The CMC does not carry with it an established fund to invest in projects.

No, the Carbon Management Challenge should not detract from complementary actions and ambitions to move towards a global net zero economy. The CMC aims to manage greenhouse gas emissions that are difficult to decarbonize completely.

The CMC builds on the existing strong collaboration through the MI Carbon Dioxide Removal Mission and CEM Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage Initiative, among other initiatives. The Clean Energy Ministerial and Mission Innovation closely align with the goals of the Carbon Management Challenge and can help accelerate research, development, demonstration and deployment of the key technologies needed to bring projects into the development pipeline and operating by 2030 that collectively manage gigaton scale of CO₂ annually.

New participants will have the opportunity to announce their participation in the Carbon Management Challenge through high profile events at international fora such as at COP, Clean Energy Ministerial, Climate Week, and others. Each country may choose to publicize their participation with stakeholders and audiences as they deem appropriate. Participants will also be published on the Carbon Management Challenge website.