Speakers

Paul Needham is the CEO of Arca, an industrial mineralization company that captures atmospheric CO2 and transforms it into rock. Arca partners with producers of critical metals to repurpose their mine waste for industrial-scale carbon removal.

A serial entrepreneur with three exits, Paul previously co-founded and led Simpa Networks, India’s largest rural rooftop solar leasing business — financing and installing clean power on 50,000 homes across 2,000 villages and employing 850 people before its acquisition by ENGIE.

Paul has over 20 years of experience as CEO, board member, and advisor in climate technology, fintech, and energy access. He currently serves as a senior advisor to clean-energy enterprises and social-impact funds accelerating the global energy transition. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce (UBC) and an M.Phil. in Economics & Politics (University of Cambridge).