A team from Climate Focus, the Indonesia Research Institute for Decarbonization (IRID), SouthSouthNorth (SSN), Transforma, and Verra have kicked off a consultation with stakeholders in Latin America, Africa and Asia, on how the voluntary carbon market could work better for them. Discover how to participate in the Global Dialogue here. 

To keep global warming to 1.5°C, global greenhouse gas emissions must decline rapidly. This means that countries need to commit to more ambitious climate change mitigation targets, and developing countries need access to finance, technologies, and capacities to implement their climate policies. If designed well, the voluntary carbon market can help to achieve both aims.

The voluntary carbon market refers to activities to avoid, reduce or sequester carbon and other greenhouse gases, such as planting trees, adopting energy efficiency measures or fitting emissions-reduction technologies to industrial plant - activities which are then converted into carbon credits for sale to businesses or organisations seeking to offset their climate pollution. The sale of carbon credits can be a way for supplier organisations to generate reliable revenue. Purchasing carbon credits can be an attractive option for organisations that have otherwise tried to reduce their own greenhouse gas emissions as much as possible, but are finding it difficult to eliminate the remainder of their emissions, themselves.

The buying and selling of voluntary carbon credits can take place in a single country (e.g. like the United States of America), but often, it occurs across borders, with credits generated in developing countries and sold in industrialised countries. A Voluntary Carbon Market Dashboard by Climate Focus shows a present-day snapshot of the market.

The Voluntary Carbon Markets (VCM) Global Dialogue puts the supply side at the centre of the discussion on how the voluntary carbon market can be better designed and deployed. The initiative brings the perspective of host countries more prominently to the debate, thereby complementing ongoing discussions that have a strong focus on the integrity of the voluntary carbon market from the viewpoint of carbon credit buyers and traders. The findings from the VCM Global Dialogue will be presented at COP 26 in Glasgow, November 2021.

To kick-start the discussion, a team of global carbon market experts and practitioners have interviewed a range of stakeholders, experts, and practitioners about their perspectives on the future of the VCM. Their opinions have been written up in four discussion papers, covering three main target audiences (developing country governments, project developers, and corporates) and one paper that dives into the specifics of REDD+.

Have a say in how the Voluntary Carbon Market operates

Now, the VCM Global Dialogue invites you to share your views on what is needed to harness the full potential of the market. Over the next month, numerous stakeholder consultations will be taking place in Asia and the Pacific, Africa, and Latin America, where the team will create a space to build a shared understanding and position regarding the future of the Voluntary Carbon Market. During the virtual consultation sessions, the author team will present their initial findings to open the conversation. Participants will have an opportunity to share their experiences, perspectives, and opinions during a facilitated discussion. The outcomes of the consultations will provide the author team with a solid and comprehensive knowledge base to finalise the position papers.

Regional consultations form the backbone of the Global Dialogue

The success of the process hinges on having as many relevant voices as possible join the conversation. This includes government individuals in the regulatory space, civil society, private sector actors responsible for carbon offset projects, and corporations seeking to purchase carbon credits to offset their emissions.

If you are interested in sharing your views in the Global Dialogue, please register through this form. Upon registration, you will receive a confirmation email containing the consultation meeting program, details on how to access the meeting, and a link to the four position papers that will be presented and discussed.

For any questions on the VCM Global Dialogue, please visit: https://vcm-gd.org/contact-us/

For more information, please see https://verra.org/vcm-gd/

Reporting by Chevon Griffiths, SouthSouthNorth, with additional reporting by Mairi Dupar, ODI/CDKN.

Image: Democratic Republic of Congo, tree planting, courtesy CIFOR