Welcome to Verra’s August Newsletter!
We are delighted to share that Verra’s Board of Directors has appointed Mandy Rambharos as its new chief executive officer (CEO). Mandy brings a wealth of experience in the carbon markets to the role which will be invaluable as she guides Verra’s strategy and as the broader voluntary carbon market continues to evolve.
Mandy was instrumental in the Just Energy Transition Partnership agreed at COP26 in Glasgow between South Africa and Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union. This background has led to her recognition as a thought leader on the global stage and given her extensive relationships across the industry, from government to private to nonprofit sectors.
Prior to joining Verra as its new CEO, Mandy served as vice president for global climate cooperation at the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), leading EDF’s strategy to promote well-designed carbon pricing and markets that support the transformation toward a low-emissions future.
Before that, Mandy spent 20 years at South Africa’s Eskom Holdings, the largest electric utility on the African continent, where she was instrumental in developing the utility’s transition from a coal-dominated utility to a renewables company. She also served on South Africa’s Presidential Climate Commission, where she advised on the country’s pursuit of its Just Energy Transition.
“Carbon markets are crucial to enable carbon neutrality and they must work efficiently and with unquestionable integrity. I look forward to working with the talented people at Verra to deliver these outcomes for a climate-resilient future for us all.”
Thank you to those who joined the Verra Stakeholder Update Webinar on July 24. We were excited to share with you (1) news about our new carbon capture and storage methodology, (2) our consultation on an optional pathway for VCS projects to update to a newer methodology and requantify their emission reductions and carbon dioxide removals to obtain Core Carbon Principles (CCP) labels for the requantified Verified Carbon Units (VCUs), and (3) the latest on the implementation of our new REDD methodology. You can find a comprehensive update and a recording of the webinar in our “A New Era for Verra: July 2024 Update.”
Finally, we are excited to share that we recently released the ABACUS label for ecosystem restoration and reforestation credits. The ABACUS label is a new market label that can be applied to Verified Carbon Units (VCUs) from projects verified to the new Afforestation, Reforestation, and Revegetation (ARR) methodology (VM0047) in Verra’s Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) Program.
As we enter the final few months of 2024, traditionally a busy time with a number of events in the environmental and social markets, we look forward to connecting with many of you in person. Next month, we will have a strong presence at Climate Week NYC and hope to see some of you there!
Stakeholder Updates
Top News
- Verra Names Innovative Energy Transition Leader as New CEO
- Verra Launches ABACUS Label for Ecosystem Restoration and Reforestation Credits (Press Release)
General News
Verified Carbon Standard Program
- Consultation: New VCS Tools for Additionality
- New ICVCM Methodology Decisions Announced
- Verra Launches ABACUS Label for Verified Carbon Units (Program Notice)
- Verra Hosts Workshop in Benin to Strengthen Local Carbon Market Expertise (French translation)
- Verra Hosts Roundtable with Bursa Malaysia and Key Stakeholders in Malaysia
- Verra and the Ministry of Treasury, Finance, Works, and Public Services of the Province of Misiones, Argentina, Announce MOU to Promote Capacity Building, Advance Training for Carbon Market Development
REDD-Related News
- Verra Updates Jurisdictional and Nested REDD+ Framework to Seek Alignment with Core Carbon Principles
- Updated Schedule for REDD Project Activity Data Allocation
- New Project Activity Data Allocation (PADA) Fee for REDD Projects
- Public Consultation for Minor Revision to REDD Module (VMD0055)
- Verra Issues Clarification to REDD Methodology
Scope 3 Standard Program
Plastic Waste Reduction Standard
Regular Updates
General
Verra-Hosted Webinars
- Overview of Public Consultation on Proposed Minor Revision to Estimation of Emission Reductions from Avoiding Unplanned Deforestation Methodology (VMD0055) – Friday, August 23, 11 am ET
- ABACUS Label: Overview – Thursday, September 5, 11 am ET
- Stakeholder Update Webinar (October 2024) – Wednesday, October 23, 11 am ET
Verra Staff at Events
We would like to bring your attention to an upcoming event:
- Verra is proud to be a Community Partner of VERGE 24, the leading climate tech event, taking place Oct. 29–31 in San Jose, CA. VERGE 24 is where sustainability practitioners deploying climate tech at scale share their successes, setbacks, and insights to smooth the path forward for all.
For a comprehensive list of all upcoming events, please check our Events page. If you’d like to invite a Verra team member to speak at your event, please contact events@verra.org.
New Resources
- Watch the recording (YouTube) of our webinar “Exploring Verra’s Plastic Program and Plastic Credits for Regional Stakeholders in Africa”
- Watch the recording (YouTube) of our webinar “Exploring Verra’s Plastic Program and Plastic Credits for Regional Stakeholders in Latin America”
- Read a synopsis of a capacity-building workshop that Verra’s Plastic Team recently held in Jakarta for Indonesian policymakers, finance institutions, NGOs, and multilateral institutions