Carbon to Sea is excited to welcome our newest team member, Paolo Roberto Domondon, who joins us as the Vice President of Policy and Finance. In this role, Paolo will lead Carbon to Sea’s efforts to foster a responsible sector around ocean-based carbon dioxide removal approaches, specifically ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE).

Paolo brings over 20 years of experience designing and implementing high-impact programs at the intersection of environmental governance and social equity. Most recently, Paolo was the Chief Program and Policy Officer at Global Fishing Watch, where he led global and regional teams across Asia, Africa, Latin America, the Mediterranean, North America, Europe, and the Pacific. He also served as the Senior Director of Policy and Partnerships at Rare, a leading environmental behavior change organization, where he led grassroots and global policy efforts centered on fisheries, oceans, climate, and biodiversity. 

He is an expert in securing international and national policy wins, building partnerships and networks, and delivering impact across diverse regions. He also has a strong track record of representing organizations in UN conventions and other international fora, leading intercultural teams, driving organizational change, and mobilizing financing.

We are grateful for Paolo’s deep expertise and breadth of experience in this space. Read Paolo’s Q&A below to learn more about his background, his views on ocean-based carbon removal, and this moment in climate.

1. What drew you to Carbon to Sea, and why did this feel like the right organization to join at this moment?

For more than 20 years, I have worked on issues that span biodiversity, oceans, fisheries, climate change, governance, and social justice. I’m energized by the chance to scale impact and, just as importantly, to sustain it. Three things drew me to Carbon to Sea:

The first is the mission. I feel a deep sense of urgency about our most pressing challenges, climate change being at the top, and I gravitate toward organizations with a bold, courageous, and unique mission. Carbon to Sea has exactly that.

The second is momentum. More than a decade ago, at the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris, I sat in a room with a handful of governments and civil society groups who were eager to advance work on the ocean–climate nexus. Since then, I’ve watched the ocean gain the attention it deserves, along with new resources (though we still need more!), and the innovation that comes with them. Joining Carbon to Sea allows me to stay a part of this community while actively pursuing new ways the ocean can help address climate change.

Finally, this work is personal. I was born and raised in the Philippines, an archipelagic nation often called the “center of the center” of marine biodiversity, and one of the countries most vulnerable to the effects of climate change. The issues Carbon to Sea is addressing are close to my heart.

2. Your work has spanned a wide range of areas, from fisheries and coastal revitalization to global policy and nonprofit leadership. How have those diverse experiences shaped the way you think about the ocean’s role in responding to climate change?

My work has ranged from small-scale fisheries and coastal communities to monitoring and enforcement in exclusive economic zones and on the high seas, to advancing the new global biodiversity goals and the High Seas Treaty. One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is that the ocean faces many pressures, including overfishing, overexploitation, habitat loss, and climate change. But the ocean isn’t only affected by these challenges; it’s also part of the solution.

Another lesson is that the ocean is connected. Its ecosystems, its biodiversity, and the communities that depend on it are all linked, yet the governance around it remains fragmented. The same is true when it comes to climate change.

There have been tremendous efforts to make our governance models work, but there is still room to improve. At the national level, that means agencies working more closely together. Internationally, it means stronger bilateral and multilateral cooperation.

I’ve also seen what’s possible when it works: the WTO Agreement on Fisheries Subsidies, the adoption of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, the High Seas Treaty securing the ratifications it needed to enter into force, and growing ocean ambition in countries’ Nationally Determined Contributions. Specific agencies shepherded each of these, but the responsibility was shared, and they moved forward because governments acted as one, both at home and on the world stage. I’m excited to see more of that in ocean and climate work.

3. Carbon to Sea is focused on advancing rigorous, responsible research into ocean alkalinity enhancement. What do you see as the most important questions the field needs to answer right now, and how has that changed over the last few years?

The most important questions remain the core ones: Is ocean alkalinity enhancement safe? Is it effective? And can it work at a climate-relevant scale? What has changed is how much closer we are to answering them. I’m amazed at how quickly Carbon to Sea — through its many partners — has narrowed the solution space. Only a few years ago, the field had relatively little to guide its work. Now, a growing understanding of OAE’s safety and efficacy allows the scientific community to focus its efforts and sharpen its questions even further.

What’s just as striking to me is how this work is being done. Carbon to Sea is deeply committed to transparency and to outcome-agnostic research, which means following the evidence wherever it leads. That integrity is what will give the field credibility as these questions are answered.

4. What was your first impression of ocean-based carbon dioxide removal as a climate solution? Has your view of climate solutions changed during your twenty years in this field?

My first reaction to ocean-based carbon dioxide removal was curiosity. I wanted to understand what the ocean could realistically contribute, and what it would take to find out responsibly.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and UNEP’s recent Limiting Overshoot report both make clear that carbon dioxide removal must be part of the mix if we’re going to meet our climate targets, alongside (and not instead of) deep emissions reductions. Cutting emissions, adapting to the impacts already under way, protecting ecosystems, and restoring ecosystems all remain essential. But given how complex and serious the problem is, understanding the full range of removal approaches, on land and in the ocean, will be vital.

Over the past two decades, I’ve watched technology advance, resources grow, and capacity develop around the world. Together with political will, that progress means I’m now driven by optimism rather than skepticism. And I intend to stay that way, for the sake of the next generation and our planet.

5. Ocean-based carbon dioxide removal is a relatively new concept, and you’ll be leading Carbon to Sea’s work on enabling a responsible sector. What does that mean, and what are you most excited about?

The overarching goal of Carbon to Sea’s Enable initiative is to unlock the governance and mobilize the ecosystem needed to enable responsible research and maturity  for ocean-based carbon dioxide removal. That includes:

  • mobilizing public funding for research and development;
  • identifying regulatory pathways, both for licensing field research and for any future transition to commercial activity;
  • designing structures and forging partnerships that support the growth of a responsible, science-driven sector; and
  • fostering transparency and shared learning throughout.

What excites me most is watching this young sector grow into a field anchored in science, with policies and markets driven by data.

6. You have led teams across Asia, Africa, Latin America, the Mediterranean, North America, Europe, and the Pacific. Are there lessons you learned from those experiences about equitable leadership in the climate space, and about how to broaden global participation?

I believe the only way to solve the complex, “wicked” problems that society and our planet face is to have everyone at the table, and to recognize that solutions must be needs-driven and co-developed across sectors, geographies, and levels of governance. That’s how we scale impact, build ownership, and sustain the change we’re all working toward.

I’ve seen this in every sector I’ve worked in, from social justice and electoral reform to oceans and fisheries. The solutions that stick, and that matter, are the ones developed together by many parts of society, especially by the people most affected by and most connected to the issues.

Leading teams across regions and geographies has also shown me that local leadership is key. That’s why raising the next generation of ocean and climate leaders remains a priority for me. Their participation in co-developing solutions and policies will be essential for this sector.

Broadening global participation isn’t passive. We can’t simply wait for people to join. It means actively seeking out participation, and creating and championing mechanisms that make it possible.

7. On a more personal note, you have spent much of your career working on behalf of ocean and coastal ecosystems. What keeps you connected to the ocean outside of work?

My family and I love spending time at the beach. Being by the ocean reminds me of its vastness, and it always gives me space to reflect on the many things I’m grateful for. From early on, we’ve introduced our son to fascinating marine creatures and to the idea that we all depend on one another. I’ve also explained to him what I do for work. For a while, he asked me every single day, “How many fish did you save today?”