The Carbon to Sea Initiative is now accepting applications for a new Vice President, Global Policy role. Please read the job description below and consider applying, even if your experience doesn’t match this job description exactly.  

To express your interest, please email a cover letter and resume to hiring@carbontosea.org. In the subject line, please include “Global Policy_Last Name_First Name”.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Advanced candidates may be asked to present a case study of recent, relevant international policy work.

Vice President, Global Policy

Location: Remote. Significant availability during US Eastern Time business hours required. ~15% international travel.

Terms: Full time, exempt. Reports to the Executive Director.

Background

Carbon to Sea Initiative is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit working to determine whether ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) can be a safe, scalable, and durable approach to carbon dioxide removal, and to lay the groundwork for a responsible sector. Since 2023, we have committed more than $30M to a global network of scientific consortia, research institutions, and field programs. We have helped build the first dedicated OAE research centers in Canada and Iceland, supported the largest open-ocean OAE field research to date, and elevated the policy relevance of ocean-based CDR across the US, Canada, EU, UK, Iceland, and Germany. We are supported by some of the most experienced funders in the climate and ocean space.

Our work organizes around two goals.

  • Research & Development: Systematically assess OAE’s efficacy, environmental and social impacts, and scalability. We fund scientists, nonprofits, and startups who share our commitment to outcome-agnostic evaluation of whether OAE belongs in the CDR portfolio.
  • Responsible Sector Building: Create the conditions that responsible OAE research and advancement depend on: clear regulatory pathways, finance directed toward rigorous R&D, shared standards and data across the field, and a public debate grounded in evidence. The aim is a sector that can scale with integrity if OAE proves viable, and say so credibly if it does not.

About the Role

We are hiring a senior leader to build the policy, finance, and field conditions that responsible OAE research and advancement depend on: clear regulatory pathways, finance directed toward rigorous R&D, shared standards and practices, and a public debate grounded in evidence.

This is one of the most senior roles at Carbon to Sea. The Vice President sits on the leadership team, shapes the strategy of the organization as a whole, and serves as a primary external face of Carbon to Sea.

The role owns Carbon to Sea’s policy strategy as a whole. To date, our policy work has concentrated on the US and Canada; the priority now is building out the international dimension, with engagement across the EU, UK, Asia, and the Global South, and in multilateral fora including UNFCCC, IMO, and IPCC.

However, this is a field-building role as much as a policy role. OAE is a young field, and much of what it needs does not exist yet: standards, best practices, shared tools, and the fora where a maturing sector aligns. Carbon to Sea invests in this infrastructure directly, from standards and best practices to shared tools and our Annual Convening. This role connects that work to the policymakers, funders, and institutions that will determine whether it takes hold.

Our policy work and our scientific work are two halves of the same question. The science is an honest evaluation of whether OAE belongs in the CDR portfolio, and it determines what we can responsibly say and advocate for at any point. Policy and finance shape how that evaluation translates into regulation, markets, and public understanding. Together, they bring real-world knowledge into how governments, communities, and markets actually work. The VP Global Policy partners closely with our R&D leadership and grantees to keep this exchange moving in both directions.

The Vice President leads a team spanning policy and communications and draws on a roster of senior international grantees, consultants, and partner organizations. The team can grow under this leader, and its exact scope and structure will be shaped together with the hire.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

  • Author and own Carbon to Sea’s global policy and engagement strategy, expanding our work in US and Canada and lending new emphasis on EU, UK, and Global South contexts, as well as multilateral fora (UNFCCC, IMO, IPCC, COP).
  • Set the international finance strategy: shaping how climate and ocean finance flows toward responsible OAE research, governance, and technological readiness.
  • In collaboration with the R&D leadership, build the shared infrastructure a maturing field requires, such as convenings, standards, best practices, and scientific capacity.
  • Develop and steward a network of senior international relationships: policymakers, regulators, ENGOs, multilateral institutions, peer funders, and key field scientists.
  • Ensure narrative coherence across policy, science, and public audiences.
  • Translate science into actionable policy. Work closely with our R&D leadership and grantees so the policy and finance strategy reflects the actual state of OAE science.
  • Represent Carbon to Sea at the most senior levels, including COP, UNFCCC sessions, IMO meetings, and major international convenings, and develop other team members to do the same.
  • Lead, manage, and develop a team across multiple functions, geographies, and seniority levels, with strong coordination with consultants and partner organizations.
  • Contribute to organizational leadership as a member of the senior leadership team, including strategy, resource allocation, hiring, and board engagement.

About You

  • 15+ years of senior experience in international climate, ocean, energy, or environmental policy. Track record of authoring strategies, building programs, and leading coalitions. Backgrounds in government, multilateral institutions, foundations, or NGOs all valued.
  • Experience building programs or institutions in a new or fast-changing field. This can include setting up initiatives from scratch, creating structures that others adopt, or organizing collaboration across organizations.
  • Demonstrated track record in at least two of: EU policy and Brussels-level engagement; UK climate and ocean policy; Global South climate policy and engagement. Comfort across multiple of these is a major plus.
  • Direct experience navigating multilateral fora (UNFCCC, IMO, IPCC, or comparable institutions) at a level senior enough to shape outcomes.
  • Experience working closely with, and in service of, a research or technical agenda. Ability to absorb complex technical material quickly, translate it credibly to policy and finance audiences, and partner effectively with R&D leadership.
  • Track record of building and stewarding senior coalitions across governments, NGOs, science institutions, and private-sector actors.
  • People management experience at a senior level. Comfortable leading a team across multiple functions, geographies, and seniority levels, with a coaching orientation.
  • Excellent written and oral communication. Strong public-speaking and convening presence.
  • Sound strategic judgment under uncertainty. Comfort holding the long view while operating in a fast-moving field.
  • Genuine interest in ocean-based climate solutions, and the humility to operate in a field where the science is still being established.

Bonus

  • Existing senior relationships in any of: European Commission, UNFCCC Secretariat, IMO, IPCC, major European or Asian climate ministries, leading international climate ENGOs, or the philanthropic networks.
  • Working language beyond English.
  • Direct ocean science, ocean governance, or marine policy experience.
  • Experience with carbon dioxide removal (CDR), carbon markets, or comparable emerging climate technology fields.

Compensation and Benefits

Salary range: $190,000–$220,000, commensurate with experience. We offer a comprehensive benefits package: In the US, this includes fully employer-paid health, dental, and vision for employees and their families, a 401(k) with up to 6% employer contribution, generous PTO (including 20 vacation days and paid health and casual leave), and 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave. For hires outside the US, we offer a comparable package adjusted to local norms.

Remote, with availability during US Eastern Time core hours for team and partner work. Around 15% international travel, with peaks around major fora and convenings.

Recruitment Process

To express your interest, please email a cover letter and resume to hiring@carbontosea.org. In the subject line, please include “Global Policy_Last Name_First Name”.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Advanced candidates may be asked to present a case study of recent, relevant international policy work.

Commitment to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion

Carbon to Sea Initiative is committed to attracting, developing, and retaining exceptional people, and to creating a work environment that is dynamic, rewarding, and enables each of us to realize our potential. We welcome candidates of all backgrounds and identities. Carbon to Sea is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religious creed, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, political affiliation, ancestry, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other classification protected by law.