Combining biomass-fired power generation with CO₂ capture and storage leads to so-called negative CO₂ emissions. Negative CO₂ emissions can already be obtained when coal is co-fired with biomass in a power plant with CCS technology. The need for bioenergy with CO₂ capture and storage has been identified as one of the key technologies to keep global warming below 2 °C, as this is one of the large-scale technologies that can remove CO₂ from the atmosphere. According to the definition of bioenergy with CO₂ capture and storage, capturing and storing the CO₂ originating from biomass, along with the biomass binding with carbon from the atmosphere as it grows, will result in net removal of CO₂ from the atmosphere. Another technology option for CO₂ removal from the atmosphere is direct air capture. The idea of a net carbon balance for different systems (including bioenergy with CO₂ capture and storage, and direct air capture) has been presented in the literature. This paper gives a background on carbon dioxide removal solutions—with a focus on ecology, economy, and policy-relevant distinctions in technology. As presented in this paper, the bioenergy with CO₂ capture and storage is superior to direct air capture for countries like Poland in terms of ecological impact. This is mainly due to the electricity generation mix structure (highly dependent on fossil fuels), which shifts the CO₂ emissions to upstream processes, and relatively the low environmental burden for biomass acquisition. Nevertheless, the depletion of non-renewable natural resources for newly built bioenergy power plant with CO₂ capture and storage, and direct air capture with surplus wind energy, has a similar impact below 0.5 GJ_3x/t of negative CO₂ emissions. When the economic factors are a concern, the use of bioenergy with CO₂ capture and storage provides an economic justification at current CO₂ emission allowance prices of around 90 EUR/t CO₂. Conversely, for direct air capture to be viable, the cost would need to be from 3 to 4.5 times higher.

A good 30 years after Joseph Nye introduced the concept of soft power into International Relations (IR) theory, Hendrik Ohnesorge presents a detailed and updated account of the concept. Ohnesorge's study advances the discussion through three main contributions: an exhaustive description and understanding of power in IR theory, a new taxonomy of soft power and ways to apply this taxonomy into research.

Ciencia sêm Fronteiras was one of the largest academic exchange programs in the early 2010s that enabled almost 100.000 Brazilian researchers to undertake their research or entire degrees abroad. As one major element of Dilma Rousseff’s international engagement, the program was often named in the context of Brazil’s soft power. But very little research has been done on how Ciencia sêm Fronteiras contributed to Brazil’s soft power reservoir. This article examines the program from an institutional perspective and analyzes why the program has come short in living up to its soft power potential.