We reached out to some of our current ESA BIC UK incubatees to discuss the #WorldSpaceWeek space and sustainability theme. We asked them a couple of questions about their company and how they are tackling sustainability challenges both on earth and in space!

We spoke to Thomas Merriman at Kita Earth.

Kita Earth recently joined the ESA BIC UK at Space Park Leicester.

Here is what Thomas had to say:

How are you using space technology to tackle sustainability challenges (in space or on earth)?

Kita’s carbon insurance helps provide certainty to organisations buying carbon. It helps give assurance that the carbon removal units they’ve bought will be delivered as expected. Whether nature-based removals or mechanical, Kita’s risk assessment uses space technology to check, record and measure that carbon removal projects are working as planned. Kita uses satellite imagery and AI to monitor a wide variety of factors from the growth of trees to the intensity of activity around biochar plants, and compares them to the advertised carbon removal. If a problem is reported, Kita can work with both the project developer and the carbon buyer to help put things right.

What measures (have you/do you intend to) put in place to be a sustainable company?

Kita’s mission is to use insurance to help the carbon dioxide removal (CDR) market scale-up. CDR must grow from the tens-of-millions of tonnes removed every year today, to billions of tonnes removed every year for the rest of the century. Using insurance to share the risk of this massive endeavour is essential to ensuring this scale is reached. At Kita, performance is measured through our carbon impact. Kita’s “Total Addressable Carbon” runs to hundreds of millions of tonnes. Using the risk transfer tools of insurance, Kita can help this industry grow and hit its goals.

Find out more about Kita Earth: https://www.kita.earth/