Category: Project Paradoxes

  • 24. Expectations Paradox

    This paradox deals with (overblown) expectations.  Carbon credits were created for two purposes. First and foremost, they are here to finance greenhouse gas emissions reductions. Second, they shall promote sustainable development in the host countries.  When buying carbon credits from a community-based project, such as efficient cookstoves, regenerative agriculture or forest restoration, our hopes and…

  • 22. Price Paradox

    Still looking for last Christmas presents? If so, you might follow the classic idea: the higher the price, the better the quality. But when it comes to carbon credits, we are not buying presents; we are trying to save the climate. Here, it should be the other way around: Conventional wisdom suggests that to maximize…

  • 21. Transparency Paradox

    Everyone agrees that transparency is a cornerstone of any carbon credit project. In fact, “transparency and integrity” has emerged as the battle cry of anybody active in the carbon markets.  But here’s an interesting twist: Projects registered under the large carbon standards are already documented with remarkable transparency–especially when compared to traditional development finance projects…

  • 20. Nature Paradox

    We are approaching Christmas, which marks the end of this paradoxes series. But before lighting the candles, we must tackle several particularly twisted and intriguing paradoxes.  Today, we explore the Nature Paradox, a riddle wrapped in bark and rooted in the soil of the mid-1970s, when scientists first asked if we could use trees to…

  • 16. Control Paradox

    This is one of the shortest but most tricky paradoxes.  Yes or no, should you fully control how the money is spent on the ground when you buy carbon credits from a project? If your answer is “no,” you risk criticism for allowing potential misuse of funds due to lack of oversight.  If your answer…

  • 15. Standards Paradox

    Yesterday, we discussed a paradox around methodologies and science. Today’s paradox deals with the Standards.  Everyone agrees: Quality and integrity are key for carbon credits. Not surprisingly, there is an increasing demand for enhanced scrutiny, quality ratings, and additional levels of certification.  But here is a twist: Stricter certifications, reviews, ratings and audits increase costs,…

  • 14. Science Paradox

    Today’s paradox focuses on a question that has haunted carbon markets since their inception: We all want “scientifically proven” results. The problem is, science evolves. Science isn’t about absolutes. It’s about a preponderance of the evidence and concurrence of experts, especially when you have social sciences layered on top of physical sciences, as is the…

  • 13. Avoidance Paradox

    There are two main ways to tackle greenhouse gasses. One is to remove them from the atmosphere–by, say, planting new trees–and the other is to prevent them from getting there in the first place–by, say, replacing coal-fired power plants with wind farms or saving endangered forests.  To fight climate change, we obviously need both: Removal…

  • 11. Leakage Paradox

    Today, we talk about unintended consequences of well-intended investments – the “spillover effect”.  Imagine you buy a forest or a logging concession to protect the trees instead of cutting them.  Great, right? But here’s the catch: the company that sold you the land might now cut down a different forest to meet the same demand…

  • 8. Ambitions Paradox

    Today’s paradox is for climate policy fans. It concerns the role of carbon credits within the Paris Agreement. The Paris Agreement mandates governments to increase their emission reduction ambitions consistently. At the same time, Article 6 encourages “voluntary cooperation in the implementation of their nationally determined contributions to allow for higher ambition in their mitigation…

  • 7. Additionality Paradox

    A full week has passed, and we haven’t discussed additionality yet. Today, we need to catch up.  A project can only earn carbon credits if considered “additional.” This means that carbon finance made the project possible (although that doesn’t necessarily mean it paid for every element of the project).  Carbon finance can de-risk speculative investments…

  • 5. Communities Paradox

    Here, we focus on one of the most sensitive topics around carbon credits.  Local and Indigenous communities play a crucial role as guardians of the landscape and the forests. They are the people on the front lines of the deforestation challenge and often the stewards of sustainable land management. Aligning with the priorities and following…

  • 1. Baseline Paradox

    This paradox has puzzled forest advocates from the start: You can only earn carbon credits from forestry projects if you restore degraded trees or protect threatened ones. This means you can’t earn credits unless there has been deforestation in the past – or there is a clear threat of deforestation now.  And here is the…