Dear Colleague,

The recent months have driven us apart physically, but brought us together in other ways. The coronavirus pandemic has demonstrated that, at the core, we’re all connected and that our individual actions carry immense impact as they affect the health and well-being of others.

George Floyd’s murder and the ensuing protest events provided a stark reminder that addressing inequity in our work and lives must be one of our utmost priorities. As we noted in an organizational statement, we are taking concrete steps to tackle racial and other implicit biases. We are openly discussing how to promote diversity, equity and inclusion both internally and as it relates to project and program implementation.

For us here at Verra, the lesson learned from everything that has happened around the world in the last several months is that we must press forward with our work and recognize our interconnectedness; we must advance action on a climate that affects everybody and seek to improve the health and well-being for every person on the planet.

I sincerely hope you are staying healthy these days and will join us in continuing to strengthen our collective efforts to have a positive impact on our world.

Below we share our quarterly updates and news.

Sincerely,

David Antonioli
CEO, Verra

Plastic Waste Reduction Program: Second Public Consultation Now Open

With the current global plastic recycling rate at a dismaying 14% and most of the remaining plastic waste accumulating in landfills or the natural environment, there is an urgent need to scale up plastic and packaging recovery and recycling activities.

We invite you to contribute to the second public consultation on the Plastic Waste Reduction Program, which will facilitate investments (including via transactable credits) in activities that make verifiable contributions to the circular economy. The consultation will be open 15 July through 23 August. Verra is developing the Plastic Program as a part of our participation in the 3R Initiative.

On Thursday, 16 July, we are hosting two webinars to provide an overview of the Plastic Program and the comment platform for the public consultation. Click here to sign up for the webinar at 4 am EDT (UTC-4), and here to sign up for the webinar at 11 am EDT (UTC-4).

Additional CORSIA Resources Available

In March 2020, the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) Program was accepted as one of six programs eligible to supply emission reduction units for compliance under the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA). Since then, Verra has developed several resources to help stakeholders navigate CORSIA, including two recorded webinars, CORSIA FAQs, and Eligibility Guidance that clearly identifies which VCUs are eligible for use in CORSIA and to highlight how such eligible VCUs will be identified on the Verra Registry. A summary of these resources as well as our revised application can be found here.

Most recently, we also completed the Sustainable Development Contributions Report Template required for VCUs to be eligible under CORSIA. Learn more here.

New “Data & Insights” Update with Focus on Colombia 

Verra is pleased to announce the inaugural edition of a country-specific “Data and Insights” Quarterly Update focused on Colombia.

The Colombian carbon tax allows entities to offset 100% of their tax liability through the purchase and retirement of Verified Carbon Units (VCUs) issued from projects certified under the Verified Carbon Standard. The Colombian carbon tax mechanism has the potential to drive finance to projects that are protecting the environment and that are supporting poor and marginalized rural and indigenous communities.

Up-to-date data and analysis can inform important decisions and illuminate market dynamics, and we are therefore pleased to share the first edition of the “Data and Insights” Quarterly Update about the Colombian Market. Learn more here.

Our regular quarterly VCS update is also available now and can be accessed here.

Environmental Finance Survey Now Open! 

Every year, Environmental Finance runs a survey to rank the leading traders, project developers, service providers and voluntary standards operating in the voluntary carbon market. Let your voice be heard and vote! This year’s survey is open until Friday, 31 July.

Other News 

Regular Updates

We’re updating our email lists! You can now subscribe to receive information on specific areas of our work that interest you. Visit this page to update your preferences.