Laura Fritsch, PhD

Co-Founder of Residual | Lecturer and Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Oxford | Scaling Investment-Grade Carbon Projects

London, England, United Kingdom

About

I am the Co-Founder of Residual, an industrial-scale carbon project developer building the infrastructure to originate carbon projects with greater speed, rigour, and high-quality integrity. Our goal is to deliver 5 million tonnes of investment-grade carbon credits annually by 2030. I am also a Lecturer and Research Fellow at the University of Oxford's Saïd Business School, where I designed and teach the first dedicated EMBA course on carbon markets. My recent research focuses on carbon market design, because the institutional structures we build today will determine whether carbon markets deliver measurable climate outcomes. Prior to Residual, I co-founded Oka, the world's first Lloyd's-backed carbon insurance syndicate, where I helped establish the formal frameworks through which carbon risk is priced and underwritten. That work, alongside my tenure as a Doctoral Research Fellow at the Alan Turing Institute, reinforced my conviction that durable climate progress demands scientific precision, financial rigour, and institutional credibility working in concert. I also advised CIMMYT, the international nonprofit stewarding the world's largest climate-resilient maize and wheat genebank, a role that reflects my broader view that carbon removal is one critical thread within a far more complex climate system. I write and speak on carbon market design, removal quality, and the conditions necessary to scale credible climate solutions. If you are working at the frontier of this space, whether as a builder, investor, researcher, or policymaker, I would welcome the opportunity to connect. Born and raised in Brazil, I came to this work through a deep sense of obligation to the ecosystems and communities I grew up around.

Experience

  • Co-Founder at Residual
    2025 - Present · 1 yr 7 mos

  • Lecturer and Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Saïd Business School, University of Oxford
    2024 - Present · 2 yrs 7 mos

  • Doctoral Fellow at The Alan Turing Institute
    2020 - Present · 6 yrs 7 mos

  • Advisor at CIMMYT
    2024 - 2025 · 1 yr

  • Co-Founder and Chief Innovation Officer at Oka, The Carbon Insurance Company
    2022 - 2023 · 1 yr