Home - Oxygen Economy

Defining an Oxygen Economy for sustaining life on Earth and growing intergenerational wealth

Why the Oxygen Economy?

The Air We Breathe Is not free and should be protected, quantified and valued.

Oxygen surrounds us, filling our lungs with every breath we take. For many of us, it’s an invisible gift of nature that we take for granted. But what if this essential resource—the very foundation of life—is free to be exploited at present? Consider if the trees, plants, and other structures that host photosynthetic organisms within ecosystems that produce oxygen had an economic value, and those who benefit most for using the Global Commons resources were required to contribute to its maintenance? This is the idea behind the Oxygen Economy, a bold and transformative concept that seeks to address environmental and social challenges in a way that is fair, sustainable, and forward-thinking beyond GDP value which is the golden scale that measures the success of our societies today.

What Is the Oxygen Economy?

The Oxygen Economy is a principled framework that assigns economic value to the oxygen that is produced by privately contracted ecosystems. While the idea might seem unusual at first glance, it stems from a growing recognition that oxygen is not just a “free” resource but a service provided by the earth’s ecosystems—particularly trees, plants, and other photosynthetic organisms. These ecosystems convert carbon dioxide into oxygen through the process of photosynthesis, supporting life on earth and maintaining the balance of our atmosphere. At its core, the Oxygen Economy aims to ensure that those who contract and monitor oxygen-producing ecosystems—such as farmlands, indigenous communities, and other rare habitats that demonstrate the adaptability and diversity of our planet —are fairly compensated for their efforts. It also holds industries and private-sector entities that benefit from oxygen consumption accountable for contributing to the sustainability of the resource.

Validating Oxygen Production as an Economy?

The concept of an Oxygen Economy arises from the urgent need to address two critical challenges facing humanity: environmental degradation and economic inequality. For decades, efforts to combat climate change have focused primarily on carbon sequestration. While important, the focus on Carbon sequestration often overlooks other vital ecosystem services, including oxygen production that can contribute towards a growing wealth paradigm. Oxygen, like water and food, is essential for life. However, unlike other resources, it has largely been treated as infinite and freely available. In reality, oxygen levels in the atmosphere are decreasing due to deforestation, fossil fuel combustion, space exploration, industrial consumption and war. Over the past 50 years, the earth’s oxygen levels have dropped by approximately 2%, raising concerns about the long- term sustainability of this critical resource.

How the Oxygen Economy Works

The Oxygen Economy operates on the principles of private property being valued using financial tools such as Valuation guarantees, stakeholder Contracts and Insurances to monetize contractually produced oxygen as a financial product . This involves three key components:

Valuation Guarantee: Assigning an economic value to the oxygen produced by contracted and registered units in identified geographical areas of production is based on the researched, monitored and validated measurements of oxygen generation by trees / plants or photosynthetic organisms such as Cyanobacteria.
Stakeholder Contracts and Compensation: Establishing formal agreements between oxygen consumers (e.g., corporations / Space exploration companies ) and contracted oxygen producers (e.g., farmers, Local communities) to ensure optimal primary ecosystem services production are maintained
Policy and Regulation: Introducing legal frameworks at a regional scale to enforce accountability and prevent the exploitation of oxygen resources.The private contracts would play a key role in monitoring bioregional Oxygen production, ensuring compliance, and incentivizing sustainable practices to scale the Oxygen economy.

Lessons from Sri Lanka:

One country that is already exploring the potential of the Oxygen Economy is in the bioregional area of Sri Lanka. Known for its rich biodiversity and commitment to environmental stewardship, Sri Lanka has implemented initiatives that align with the principles of the Oxygen Economy. In one notable project, women from farming communities established and nurtured trees using contracts that measured and validated payments for Photosynthetic Biomass on an annually recurring basis for a period of 4 years. The stakeholders earning substantive income from this project were sensitized to the emerging Oxygen economy while contributing their obligations to global environmental resilience. Over three years, these participants generated thousands of liters of oxygen, demonstrating that the concept is not only viable but also impactful.

Scaling the Oxygen Economy Globally

While Sri Lanka’s efforts are a promising start, the true potential of the Oxygen Economy lies in its ability to scale globally. Imagine a world where farmers are compensated for the establishment of trees, where rural and even urban greenery projects could receive funding to expand their impact for this paradigm of business.Such a system would not only help combat climate change but also address economic inequalities of the current GDP paradigm, by together contracting the Oxygen economic asset tool to those who sustain the planet’s life-support systems.

Addressing Potential Challenges

Like any transformative idea, the Oxygen Economy faces potential challenges. Critics may argue that assigning a monetary value to Oxygen risks commodifying a natural resource that should remain freely accessible. Others may question the feasibility of measuring, validating and regulating oxygen production on a global scale. These concerns can be addressed by emphasizing the ethical principles behind the Oxygen Economy. The goal is not to charge people for breathing but to ensure that those who contribute to its sustainability profit from financial contracts for Oxygen production. Additionally, such transparent systems for measuring and validating oxygen production will be crucial for building trust and ensuring fairness towards the vision of accounting for intergenerational wealth beyond the GDP framework that exists.

A Vision for the Future

The Oxygen Economy represents a paradigm shift in how we think about our relationship with the planet. It challenges us to move beyond the notion of nature as an infinite resource and to recognize the true value of the Earth as an ecosystem that sustains life for all biota. By aligning economic practices with environmental stewardship, the Oxygen Economy offers a path towards a more equitable and sustainable future that backs the foundations of intergenerational wealth to reflect our contributions to cycling atmospheric gasses of the atmosphere and our Global Commons. Imagine a world where the air we breathe is not taken for granted but cherished and protected. Where farmers, communities, and ecosystems are rewarded for their contributions to the planet’s well-being. Where industries operate with this truly revolutionary framework of accountability to prioritize the health of our shared environment. This is the vision of the Oxygen Economy—a vision that is within our reach if we act together, with urgency and determination to lay its foundations.