Toucan’s Post

The Biden-Harris Administration has released new Principles for Responsible Participation in Voluntary Carbon Markets (VCMs), aimed at advancing high-integrity VCMs that spur climate action and economic growth. According to the source, challenges like unreliable crediting methodologies have hindered market effectiveness, prompting a call for ensuring carbon credits meet credible standards, avoiding harm, and promoting transparency. Corporate buyers are urged to prioritize emissions reductions, and market participants encouraged to improve integrity. These principles aim to strengthen VCMs, restore confidence, and ensure they fulfill their climate goals effectively. Review the source for a better perspective: https://lnkd.in/e2w2U4-y

This week, the Biden-Harris administration announced Principles for Responsible Participation for high-integrity voluntary carbon markets. The news marks the federal government's support to advance and leverage these VCMs. VCMs can accelerate decarbonization by offering carbon credits that represent real emissions reductions — making a strong impact in the near-term to meet sustainability and climate action goals. Read the full fact sheet: https://lnkd.in/e2w2U4-y And learn how LoCI can help customers generate ACR-verified, high-integrity carbon credits: https://lnkd.in/edkBQBPz #innovation #sustainability

This morning, the federal government announced its commitment to seven principles for a high-integrity voluntary carbon market (VCM) and to the pivotal role that a high-integrity, efficient VCM could play in scaling decarbonization strategies, empowering local communities, and protecting critical ecosystems. These principles, supported by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, Senior Advisor for International Climate Policy John Podesta, National Economic Advisor Lael Brainard, and National Climate Advisor Ali Zaidi are aligned with emerging best practices on carbon market integrity and quality, and will serve as the US government’s cohesive vision and standard for the VCM moving forward. The Carbon Markets team at RMI has been working tirelessly to increase trust and transparency in the VCM for several years. We are currently developing a data framework for carbon credit transparency and a buyer’s guide to identify high-quality data and carbon credits. These tools aim to ensure all data about carbon credit performance – namely, their verified emissions, community, and ecosystem impact and benefits – can be more accessible, digested, and useful to guide decisions. Today’s statement bolsters this work by creating a governance landscape that shares an emphasis on VCM data integrity and verified climate outcomes. We are excited to share more about the data framework and buyer’s guide in the coming months! RMI recognizes the scientific consensus that carbon removal and credits will likely be needed, alongside rapid and sustained emissions reductions, to avoid the worst outcomes of climate change. Today’s announcement is a positive step towards the critical financing mechanisms that will ensure we can scale the solutions we need for carbon removal and decarbonization. Access today’s press release below and learn more about RMI’s work in the carbon markets space by visiting bit.ly/RMICarbonMarkets. https://lnkd.in/e2w2U4-y

Any new guidance and support at government level to help build a high integrity and well-regulated carbon market is welcomed by South Pole. The more active regulators become in the carbon credits market and in promoting the role they play in delivering our shared climate goals, the better. This will help the industry to accelerate much-needed trust and transparency in the market. Only then can the market fulfil its full potential for positive climate action. Clear regulation will also ensure carbon credit supply, and that trading and demand is as robust and credible as it can be. This will unlock vital global finance efficiently and at scale so we can tackle the most critical climate solutions science says we need. As a pioneer in the voluntary carbon markets, South Pole has been carefully preparing for the next phase of the market’s growth. We are working hard to stay at the forefront of the expanding ecosystem of participants and regulation by advancing our own risk, quality and compliance processes, while ensuring we can also innovate for impact in the long-term. Our hope is that other governments show greater support and additional guidance to continue to build both the credibility and capability of the carbon market. https://lnkd.in/gArPsdd3

The Biden-Harris administration has committed to achieving climate goals of cutting greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030 and reaching net zero by 2050. As part of this effort, they have released a Joint Statement of Policy and new Principles for Responsible Participation in Voluntary Carbon Markets (VCMs) to advance high-integrity VCMs, in an attempt to drive credible climate action and generate economic opportunities across the US economy. The principles include: 🔹Carbon credits and the activities that generate them should meet credible atmospheric integrity standards and represent real decarbonisation. 🔹Credit-generating activities should avoid environmental and social harm and should, where applicable, support co-benefits and transparent and inclusive benefits-sharing. 🔹Corporate buyers that use credits should prioritise measurable emissions reductions within their own value chains. 🔹Credit users should publicly disclose the nature of purchased and retired credits. 🔹Public claims by credit users should accurately reflect the climate impact of retired credits and should only rely on credits that meet high integrity standards. 🔹Market participants should contribute to efforts that improve market integrity. 🔹Policymakers and market participants should facilitate efficient market participation and seek to lower transaction costs. The intended incentives and guardrails include: 🔹The USDA is implementing programs to lower barriers to market participation and connect landowners with resources for carbon credit generation. 🔹The Department of Energy (DOE)'s support of technologies that remove carbon emissions directly from the atmosphere through competitive credit purchase programs. 🔹Administration investment in programmes to develop and deploy carbon removal technologies, aiming for commercial viability and community benefits. 🔹US departments and agencies will participate in international efforts to shape the quality of activities and credits in VCMs. 🔹The US government will aid the development of high-integrity VCMs in developing countries, providing technical and financial assistance. 🔹Treasury’s Principles for Net-Zero Financing and Investment support net-zero commitments and market integrity. 🔹The Administration will undertake efforts to improve GHG measurement, monitoring, and reporting, ensuring the scientific integrity of credited activities. 🔹Regulatory agencies promote VCM integrity by addressing fraudulent activities and bad actors. 🔹An interagency Task Force on Voluntary Carbon Markets ensures a coordinated approach to address market challenges and opportunities. The White House - FACT SHEET: Biden-⁠Harris Administration Announces New Principles for High-Integrity Voluntary Carbon Markets - https://lnkd.in/d_iSzWH9 #greenhousegas #carboncredit #carbonmarket

The White House issues a Joint Statement of Policy and New Principles for Responsible Participation in Voluntary Carbon Markets (VCM)s. While perhaps late to the global game, still welcome and notably that principles are co-signed by interdependent government agencies like Treasury, Energy and Agriculture - and encourage the importance of public sector guidance to unlock private capital towards the energy transition. #VCM #climate #privatecapital https://lnkd.in/eDAxtkQx

Last month, the US Government announced their approach to advancing high-integrity Voluntary Carbon Markets as part of broader plans to drive climate action and economic opportunity. A significant development, the announcement of these new principles highlights how VCMs are increasingly being recognised as beneficial to wider strategies to combat climate change, as long as a robust market is established and reliable, high-integrity credits are connected to credible buyers and environmental integrity is prioritised. Read the full fact sheet here: https://lnkd.in/e2w2U4-y #ClimateChange #Sustainability #ESG #VoluntaryCarbonMarkets

Lucy Hargreaves with a good summary of today’s major announcement from the US government. Yes, you can use carbon credits to address your scope 3 emissions with high integrity carbon credits… I encourage you to not only read the White House’s publication through Lucy’s link below but to also watch back the announcement on YouTube here: https://lnkd.in/eDeYJDb2, which will help to completely dispel any lingering suggestion from the Financial Times article that was published pre-announcement that the US was in any way saying “don’t use carbon credits” (well pointed out, Rich Gilmore, in this post: https://lnkd.in/eiVwTtge) All Yellen and the other speakers said today was to repeat existing industry best practise: PRIORITISE doing the actual hard work of decarbonising your business and supply chain FIRST. Once done, THEN consider voluntarily buying high-integrity carbon credits to offset your unabated emissions… As Lucy notes, there was a strong hint to SBTi that they should be encouraging MORE use of carbon credits in relation to unabated emissions, NOT inhibiting demand.

📢 Exciting News from the White House 📢 This week the Biden-Harris Administration announced new principles to ensure high integrity in voluntary carbon markets: https://hubs.la/Q02z69ms0 These principles focus on transparency, real decarbonization, and fair practices— reinforcing the need for robust and credible carbon credits. This initiative aims to boost confidence in the voluntary carbon markets after the battering they have taken in the media in recent years and ensure they effectively contribute to climate goals and provide the economic benefits they claim. 🌍 At Climate Vault, we applaud this new initiative. Since our inception, our commitment to transparent, verifiable, and high-quality climate action has been a cornerstone of our methodology and climate solutions. We were formed out of our Co- Founder Michael Greenstone's frustration over the inability of the voluntary carbon markets to deliver on their promised results time and time again. Our approach to carbon measurement, reduction removal aligns perfectly with the new standards released by the White House, and we look forward to witnessing the meaningful climate impact and economic opportunities that arise from this week's announcement. #ClimateAction #CarbonMarkets #Sustainability #HighIntegrity