A true believer in climate change, James Sawyer’s initial involvement through Praxair has led to a continuing volunteer and financial commitment to the Earth Institute.

Since Praxair’s industrial gases were significantly used by its customers in producing energy, treating air emissions and water emissions as well as purifying drinking water, Sawyer felt it was only natural for Praxair to be one of the first companies leading the way with corporate environmental and sustainability programs.  

One of those programs was a joint research project with Columbia University’s Earth Institute (at the time led by Jeffrey Sachs) focused on developing technology to remove carbon dioxide directly from the air utilizing Praxair air separation technologies.  

“It is great to be around scientists who still follow the scientific method and peer sharing and review. To me the techniques used are fascinating from analyzing trees, isotopes and remote sensing.”

James Sawyer