It’s been another busy quarter at Verra, and there are a number of important announcements we want to share with you!

First, Verra is supporting the launch of a new initiative, the Voluntary Carbon Markets Global Dialogue (VCM-GD). Its primary goal is to bring the perspectives of supply side stakeholders to the center of the discussion about how the voluntary carbon market can be best designed and deployed to achieve meaningful climate action. The VCM-GD is led by Climate Focus and involves the Indonesia Research Institute for Decarbonization, SouthSouthNorth, and Transforma as regional partners. The team has already successfully led eleven stakeholder consultations, is finalizing position papers on a number of topics, and will publish a consolidated paper to drive the discussion around the VCM at COP26 in Glasgow.

Verra is also at the forefront of work to enhance ambition and innovation, having registered the first “blue carbon” conservation project using the VCS program. The Blue Carbon Project Gulf of Morrosquillo in Colombia will sequester nearly one million tonnes of carbon dioxide over 30 years by conserving and sustainably managing 7,561 hectares of coastal mangrove ecosystem, marshes, and associated streams. The project will also provide important economic, social, and environmental benefits for local communities, including the strengthening of local governance, and rehabilitating and protecting the habitat of several endangered species.

In addition, we continue to engage with policy dialogues, including the Taskforce on Scaling Voluntary Carbon Markets (TSVCM). Verra supports its Phase 2 Final Report and endorses the affiliated Statement on High Ambition Path to Net-Zero. You can read Verra’s detailed comments to the TSVCM. In brief, we endorsed the need for tough safeguards to ensure carbon credit quality, yet cautioned the TSVCM about being too prescriptive in regard to technical questions, which is a job better suited for the future governance body.

As all of this great work happens at Verra, we have been excited to hire many new staff members over the past few months. They will help us to continue building on Verra’s success and support the growth of our organization as markets continue to expand.

Please continue reading for more news about our efforts to drive innovation and raise ambitions for climate action and sustainable development. Please also consider voting for the VCS Program in the annual Environmental Finance survey (more details below). Voting ends this Friday!

Sincerely,

David Antonioli
CEO

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