Paul Needham is the CEO of Arca, a carbon mineralization company that permanently removes excess CO₂ from the atmosphere by transforming it into rock. Arca's mission is to help stop and reverse climate change by returning gigatonnes of CO₂ to the ground. The company partners with mines that produce the critical metals essential for the clean energy transition—converting mine waste into a massive carbon sink. The result: carbon-negative critical metals.

With over two decades of experience as a senior advisor, board member, technology CEO, and serial entrepreneur, Paul is driven by a commitment to solving urgent social and environmental challenges. He co-founded and led Simpa Networks, Asia’s largest rural rooftop solar leasing company, which financed and installed clean power systems on 50,000 rooftops across 2,000 villages. Under his leadership, Simpa created over 850 full-time green jobs and delivered clean electricity, lighting, and cooling to more than 250,000 people in rural India.

Paul also serves as Co-Chair of the D-REC Initiative, a not-for-profit, multi-stakeholder, industry-led effort to build a global market for distributed renewable energy certificates. He thrives at the intersection of technology innovation and sustainable economic development, collaborating with high-performance teams, responsible corporations, and leading sustainability organizations. He believes in the transformative power of bold vision combined with practical execution.