What This Page Shows

This Collaboration Atlas maps the research networks of 90,569 CDR scientists using co-authorship data from OpenAlex. The 342,793 co-authored papers reveal how researchers collaborate across disciplines, institutions, and countries — and which scientific communities are bridging the gap between different carbon dioxide removal methods.

How It Was Built

  1. Co-authorship networks: Every paper co-authored by CDR researchers creates a connection in the network
  2. Louvain community detection: Algorithmic clustering identified 136 distinct research communities that frequently publish together
  3. Pathway classification: Each community’s dominant method was determined by OpenAlex classification + LLM filtering
  4. Bridge scoring: Researchers with high network betweenness centrality — spanning multiple methods and geographies — are flagged as “bridge researchers”

What the Data Means

⚠️ Experimental Analysis

This collaboration analysis is highly experimental. Key limitations:

  • Based on co-authorship data from OpenAlex, which has known disambiguation issues
  • Community detection is algorithmic — detected clusters are approximate, not ground truth
  • "Bridge researcher" scores use network metrics (betweenness centrality), not editorial judgment
  • CDR pathway assignment uses automated classification (code-based patterns + LLM filtering)
  • Data is from the latest census snapshot — updated monthly

85,174
Connected Researchers
342,793
Co-authorship Links
136
Research Communities
4,041
Cross-Method Bridges

🔥 How CDR Methods Cross-Pollinate

This matrix shows co-authorship links between researchers from different CDR methods. Higher numbers = more collaboration.

Soil C.BiocharDACEWBECCSOceanGeneral
Soil C.194k15k2283.1k8211.5k5.8k
Biochar15k82k4056168844892.3k
DAC22840511k2251581453.3k
EW3.1k61622516k361.0k1.9k
BECCS821884158366.9k442.4k
Ocean1.5k4891451.0k4416k1.9k
General5.8k2.3k3.3k1.9k2.4k1.9k35k

🌍 Top Country Collaborations

The strongest international research partnerships in CDR, measured by co-authored papers.

China ↔ United States
13,125 papers
Australia ↔ China
3,871 papers
China ↔ United Kingdom
3,487 papers
China ↔ Germany
2,874 papers
United Kingdom ↔ United States
2,230 papers
China ↔ Hong Kong
2,173 papers
Canada ↔ China
2,051 papers
India ↔ United States
1,824 papers
China ↔ Spain
1,551 papers
China ↔ Pakistan
1,513 papers
Germany ↔ United States
1,301 papers
Canada ↔ United States
1,259 papers
China ↔ Japan
1,156 papers
Australia ↔ United States
1,040 papers
China ↔ France
995 papers
Germany ↔ United Kingdom
930 papers
China ↔ Singapore
906 papers
China ↔ Taiwan
846 papers
South Korea ↔ United States
835 papers
China ↔ South Korea
815 papers

🔗 Bridge Researchers

These researchers connect the most CDR methods through their co-authorship network — the rare people who span biochar, DAC, ocean CDR, and more. Click names to visit their researcher profile.

#ResearcherMethodsCo-authorsPrimaryInstitutionCountry
1Yakov Kuzyakov4541Soil CarbonGeorg-August-Universität GöttingenGermany
2Pete Smith5273Soil CarbonScotland's Climate Change Centre of Expertise (…United Kingdom
3Josep Peñuelas6301Soil CarbonConsejo Superior de Investigaciones CientíficasSpain
4Rattan Lal5190Soil CarbonThe Ohio State UniversityUnited States
5Maurício Roberto Cherubin5162Soil CarbonUniversidade de São Paulo - Escola Superior de …Brazil
6Noah J. Planavsky5165Enhanced WeatheringPlanetary Science InstituteUnited States
7Jordi Sardans6252Soil CarbonCREAF - Centre de Recerca Ecològica i Aplicacio…Spain
8Phil Renforth7183General CDRHeriot-Watt UniversityUnited Kingdom
9David J. Beerling5183Enhanced WeatheringLeverhulme TrustUnited Kingdom
10Ondřej Mašek7146BiocharUniversity of EdinburghUnited Kingdom
11Carlos Eduardo Pellegrino Cerri5143Soil CarbonUniversity of Sao PauloBrazil
12Kadambot H. M. Siddique3155Soil CarbonThe University of Western AustraliaAustralia
13Ji Chen4222Soil CarbonChinese Academy of Sciences Institute of Earth …China
14Philippe Ciais5171General CDRUniversité Paris-SaclayFrance
15Shaoshan An4127Soil CarbonInstitute of Soil and Water ConservationChina
16Andreas Oschlies3130Ocean CDRGEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research KielGermany
17Yì Wáng6152BiocharChinese University of Hong KongHong Kong
18Ulf Riebesell4112Ocean CDRGEOMAR Helmholtz-Zentrum für Ozeanforschung KielGermany
19Sara Vicca4126Enhanced WeatheringUniversity of AntwerpBelgium
20Roland Bol5142Soil CarbonForschungszentrum JülichGermany
21Axel Don495Soil CarbonThünen-Institute of Climate-Smart AgricultureGermany
22Lennart T. Bach382Ocean CDRUniversity of TasmaniaAustralia
23Hailong Wang7151Soil CarbonFoshan UniversityChina
24Jens Hartmann5145Enhanced WeatheringUniversität HamburgGermany
25Chao Liang3159Soil CarbonZhejiang A & F UniversityChina
26Zhouping Shangguan488Soil Carbon中国科学院水利部水土保持研究所China
27Scott X. Chang3130Soil CarbonUniversity of AlbertaCanada
28Daniel C.W. Tsang472BiocharHong Kong University of Science and TechnologyHong Kong
29Rajan Ghimire264Soil CarbonNew Mexico State UniversityUnited States
30Raymond R. Tan654General CDRHefei University of TechnologyChina
31Yiqi Luo4152Soil CarbonCornell UniversityUnited States
32Philip A.E. Pogge von Strandmann3118Enhanced WeatheringJohannes Gutenberg Universität MainzGermany
33Ram Swaroop Meena4100Soil CarbonBanaras Hindu UniversityIndia
34Weiqi Wang4134Soil CarbonFujian Normal UniversityChina
35Manuel Delgado‐Baquerizo4147Soil CarbonInstituto de Recursos Naturales y Agrobiología …Spain
36Zhaoliang Song4138Soil CarbonTianjin UniversityChina
37Tida Ge2129Soil CarbonNingbo UniversityChina
38Cornélia Rumpel390Soil CarbonCentre National de la Recherche ScientifiqueFrance
39Niall Mac Dowell357General CDRImperial College LondonUnited Kingdom
40Christopher T. Reinhard470General CDRGeorgia Institute of TechnologyUnited States
41Nanthi Bolan3120Soil CarbonThe University of Western AustraliaAustralia
42Jeroen Meersmans384Soil CarbonUniversity of LiègeBelgium
43Vishnu D. Rajput2108Soil CarbonSouthern Federal UniversityRussia
44Minggang Xu294Soil CarbonShanxi Agricultural UniversityChina
45Lukas Van Zwieten5149Soil CarbonNSW Department of Primary IndustriesAustralia
46Han Y. H. Chen395Soil CarbonInner Mongolia Agricultural UniversityCanada
47Ian Power464Enhanced WeatheringTrent UniversityCanada
48Yue Wang579BiocharNanjing University of Science and TechnologyChina
49Peng Li378Soil CarbonHunan Normal UniversityChina
50Jens Leifeld386General CDRFederal Office for AgricultureSwitzerland

🌐 Research Communities by CDR Method

The 50 detected communities, grouped by dominant pathway. Each cluster represents researchers who frequently co-author together, revealing natural research subfields within CDR.

Soil Carbon

Community 22: Soil Carbon (2,461 researchers)

🔬 Soil Carbon 73% 🌍 India (70%) 🏛️ Indian Agricultural Research Institute
Top researchers: Ram Swaroop Meena, Vishnu D. Rajput, Avijit Ghosh, Tatiana Minkina, N. L. Panwar

Community 19: Soil Carbon (1,655 researchers)

🔬 Soil Carbon 81% 🌍 China (54%) 🏛️ Aarhus University
Top researchers: Yakov Kuzyakov, Ji Chen, Axel Don, Tida Ge, Jens Leifeld

Community 31: Soil Carbon (1,271 researchers)

🔬 Soil Carbon 76% 🌍 Brazil (46%) 🏛️ Universidade de São Paulo
Top researchers: Rattan Lal, Maurício Roberto Cherubin, Carlos Eduardo Pellegrino Cerri, Cimélio Bayer, Hai‐Lin Zhang

Biochar

Community 49: Biochar (619 researchers)

🔬 Biochar 61% 🌍 China (85%) 🏛️ Shenyang Agricultural University
Top researchers: Ke Sun, Zhangliu Du, Lanfang Han, Baoshan Xing, Jun Meng

Community 53: Biochar (564 researchers)

🔬 Biochar 59% 🌍 China (62%) 🏛️ Xi'an University of Architecture and Technology
Top researchers: Junfeng Su, Jörg Rinklebe, Shengsen Wang, Xiaozhi Wang, Andrew R. Zimmerman

Community 47: Biochar (484 researchers)

🔬 Biochar 80% 🌍 China (45%) 🏛️ Shanghai Jiao Tong University
Top researchers: Daniel C.W. Tsang, Yong Sik Ok, Meththika Vithanage, Chunfei Wu, Xinde Cao

General CDR

Community 2: General CDR (1,489 researchers)

🔬 General CDR 52% 🌍 Germany (18%) 🏛️ ETH Zurich
Top researchers: Philippe Ciais, Andreas Oschlies, David P. Keller, Benjamin K. Sovacool, Julia Pongratz

Community 1: General CDR (839 researchers)

🔬 General CDR 50% 🌍 United States (33%) 🏛️ Imperial College London
Top researchers: Niall Mac Dowell, Haewon McJeon, Jay Fuhrman, Olivier Bahn, Jeffrey Dankwa Ampah

Ocean CDR

Community 11: Ocean CDR (797 researchers)

🔬 Ocean CDR 51% 🌍 Germany (20%) 🏛️ Universität Hamburg
Top researchers: Ulf Riebesell, Sara Vicca, Lennart T. Bach, Jens Hartmann, Nikolas Hagemann

Community 77: Ocean CDR (640 researchers)

🔬 Ocean CDR 74% 🌍 United States (35%) 🏛️ Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Top researchers: Nianzhi Jiao, Wei‐Jun Cai, Chinmayee V. Subban, Matthew D. Eisaman, Jessica Cross

Community 9: Ocean CDR (430 researchers)

🔬 Ocean CDR 33% 🌍 United Kingdom (19%) 🏛️ Politecnico di Milano
Top researchers: Phil Renforth, Spyros Foteinis, Mijndert van der Spek, Sonja Geilert, Liam A. Bullock

Enhanced Weathering

Community 4: Enhanced Weathering (710 researchers)

🔬 Enhanced Weathering 40% 🌍 United States (33%) 🏛️ North Carolina State University
Top researchers: Noah J. Planavsky, David J. Beerling, Christopher T. Reinhard, Rachael H. James, William Joe Sagues

Community 107: Enhanced Weathering (392 researchers)

🔬 Enhanced Weathering 74% 🌍 China (52%) 🏛️ Chinese Academy of Sciences
Top researchers: Philip A.E. Pogge von Strandmann, Thierry Adatte, Jin Zhang, David J. Wilson, Benjamin Mills

BECCS

No research communities detected for BECCS in this dataset.

DAC

No research communities detected for DAC in this dataset.


🌐 CDR Method Collaboration Chord

How do CDR research methods connect through co-authorship? This chord diagram shows the flow of collaboration between pathways — thicker ribbons mean more co-authored papers linking researchers across methods.

Soil Carbon Biochar DAC Enhanced Weathering BECCS Ocean CDR General CDR

Hover over ribbons to see co-authorship counts. Ribbon thickness is proportional to collaboration volume.