Climate profiteering: Are intermediaries exploiting carbon markets for their own ends?

Despite the role voluntary carbon markets are meant to play in financing climate action, the exact amount of money reaching climate projects and local communities is shrouded in mystery, while nine out of 10 intermediaries do not disclose their fees or profit margins, a new study commissioned by Carbon Market Watch reveals.

December editorial: Greenwashing fossil fuels in Sharm el-Sheikh and Brussels

At a time when we need to shift our collective climate action up a gear, the influence of the fossil fuels lobby is succeeding in slowing down ambition both at COP27 and in the EU. COP27 produced one significant breakthrough – the agreement on a fund to compensate vulnerable and poorer countries for the loss …

Lacklustre COP27 fails to bring clarity to carbon markets

The Sharm el-Sheikh climate conference’s final deal on Article 6 opens the door to secret carbon market deals between countries with little oversight. On a positive note, a new type of carbon credit could help spell the end of offsetting, but the agreement falls far short of what is needed.

COP27: Make or break time for putting the brakes on the climate crisis

Under the shadow of the worsening climate crisis, COP27 kicks off early next week. We’ll be there to influence the conversations on global carbon markets as much as we can, guided by our vision of a socially just and decarbonised future. Two years into the make or break decade for the climate, COP27 is a …

Governments must slash emissions, not ambition

As Carbon Market Watch prepares to attend the COP27 climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, we urge the international community to commit to far more ambitious climate action. Negotiators must design effective and fair carbon markets under Article 6 that complement rather than replace rapid and massive emissions reductions. The COP27 climate conference in Sharm el-Sheikh (6-18 November …

COP27 FAQ: Article 6 of the Paris Agreement explained

The rules governing carbon markets agreed at the COP26 in Glasgow need to be translated into functioning and effective mechanisms at COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh. This handy Carbon Market Watch guide explains Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, how it works and main the issues at stake.

Scale vs integrity: The impossibility of developing a large market of high quality carbon offsets

Voluntary carbon market standards promising tonne-for-tonne compensation and exact measurement of impact are attempting to square the circle, argues Gilles Dufrasne. One solution is to drop offsetting claims and offer credits as financial contributions to climate action. Last week marked the closing of the public consultation on quality criteria for carbon credits by a new …